Dragon Moon
by Lunar-ninja
Summary: 2nd in the Chimaera Dragons series. The turtles are accidentally transported to a world where magic and creatures rule. Now they must find each other before time runs out.
1. What's in an Egg?

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the TMNT. Just the world of Haradris and all of its inhabitants.

A/N: Yeah, yeah, I know it's a bit quick to have this thing up and running, but I couldn't keep the thing inside anymore. It's been pounding at my mind's locked door ever since chapter twenty-eight on TM. So, without further ado, let me introduce you to my first chapter in this story - and CLIFFY! BWAHAHAHAH!

**1.**

Don picked at the fragment of yellow eggshell on his desk with a scalpel and made a frustrated grunting noise. For the past week he'd been trying to get a sliver of the fragment off the larger specimen to no avail. Nothing seemed to penetrate its defenses. He'd tried hydrochloric acid, the sound test that had worked on liquefying the Elentian crystals, even a flame test. Nothing, it seemed, would be able to damage this thing. "You dragons are a handful when it comes to examining something as simple as a piece of your egg!" he growled, leaning back in his chair and sighing.

Saesha didn't even bat an eyelid. "It's not my fault," she said serenely from her perch atop Don's computer monitor. "Only Aireilei knows about where we come from and she doesn't even know how to get there." She shifted slightly, settling into a 'lay down' position, paws underneath her muzzle.

Don shot a searing glare at the egg fragment currently sitting on the desk, as if hoping to disintegrate it where it sat. He scratched one furry ear ruefully, squinting at the stubborn shard of matter, muttering incoherent phrases.

The lavender dragon opened one amethyst eye and smiled. "Maybe that's because it's Iwansi's egg fragment," she said in answer to one of his annoyed words.

The aforementioned dragon stuck her yellow head through Don's subway door and frowned. "Was that an insult, dear sister of mine?" she asked sweetly, eyes narrowing in mock threatening.

Saesha flicked her tail absently. "I was only saying that you're difficult."

Iwansi puffed a black cloud of smoke out her nostrils. "Whatever, Princess Plum." A horrified screech rang out from near the monitor wall, making Don jump in his chair and Saesha jerk her head up from upon her paws in surprise at the sudden noise.

"I'm melting! MELTING!"

"Man, could you be any more of a drama hag? Seriously, I've heard Shredder scream out more melodiously than that!"

"Stupid Wicked Witch of the West," Iwansi muttered scornfully, squealing a claw on the steel floor. She turned around, tail twitching. "Hey, Mikey! Can't you find something better to watch? I'm sick and tired of hearing Dorothy whimper!"

Don sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Iwansi, was there a good reason for coming in here to annoy me?" he inquired patiently. Even his tolerance has limits, and Iwansi was a practiced adept at finding them.

The yellow dragon thought for a moment, then nodded, ears flattening as she heard the sound of hooting, flying monkeys in the background. "Uh, yeah, now that I think about it, Aireilei said she needed to see that egg fragment a minute. She thinks she knows what it can do."

His ears perked up considerably. "'Can do'?"

Iwansi sat down abruptly and twisted around to scratch an irritating itch on the base of her long ear with her metal cyborg leg. "Yup, she told me that she can explain it when you get there." The Cowardly Lion began singing an abrasively joyful ballad in the background. "If that bloody lion says one more thing, I'll go fry that tape within the next five minutes!" Iwansi growled through her teeth, letting out a sigh of relief and dropping her tensed leg when the itch stopped.

"Hahah! Eat that!" A muffled thump, followed by a squeal of mock rage rebounded off the subway car walls.

Don twisted around in his seat, a questioning frown on his green face. "Was that Rijinn I just heard?" he inquired, surprised, since the little red dragon was rarely seen without Raph.

"Yup," Iwansi confirmed. "Lately he's been getting into the habit of brawling with Bima in the dojo."

"Well, it's an awful good thing that they're not their original size!" Two months ago, Raph had gotten into a fight with Leo and true to form, went on a run to cool off. That was when he'd met Aireilei (who was human at that point in time and was known as Keilah), cornered in an alley by a gang of Purple Dragons. The hoodlums had seen the girl transform into a dragon. They hadn't known that the dragon itself was a different entity from another world. Raph had been about to jump down and beat up the good-for-nuthin's to a pulp when Keilah released Bima and scared them off. The two had met briefly only to be captured by a duo named Keron and Nechai. Both worked for a character named Tiquae, who also worked under Shredder. Raph had simply been along because he was a witness. Long story short, Bima, with the help of the turtles, Leatherhead, and Splinter, had hunted down and released all four of her siblings from their prisons inside Japanese stone tablets. Then was when they'd found out that Keilah was a humanoid-like dragon from the world of Haradris, a realm that was currently in chaos, as were the other five dragons. The turtles had traveled from Japan to New York and beat the ever-loving snot out of Tiquae, who was killed after the battle from result of an enormous energy discharge from Donatello himself. The dragons had been turned into gemstone figurines the height of a ballpoint pen. It had been two months after the fight that Lord Simultaneous appeared in the Lair when all were asleep and revived the dragons. The five dragon siblings, however, had not returned to their original sizes and stayed at the height of a forearm. "The dojo would be an absolute mess!"

"It already is without the factor of size to matter," Saesha commented, shifting her grip on the computer monitor.

Iwansi poked Don in the shin with one of her clawed paws. "Sometime today would be nice, oh Mr. Genius," she prodded.

Don shook his head and leapt to his feet, pulling his tail out of the chair with a powerful whip-like motion. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" He grabbed his Bo and slipped it into the holster on his back. Then he maneuvered his tail to grab the comb-sized fragment of yellow egg from his desk, wrapping it firmly in the coils of lithe purple scale and muscle.

"Show-off," Saesha chided, taking hurried flight and settling, catlike, on Don's right shoulder. She nipped playfully at his lavender ears as he bounced energetically down the steps to the main part of the Lair.

"Hey, knock it off!" The turtle-dragon flattened the objects of her entertainment against his skull.

Iwansi grunted dejectedly, following close behind the two friends. "Oh sure, _she _gets a shoulder!" The yellow dragon bounded spasmodically toward Aireilei, who was currently sitting on a corner of the dojo mat, waxing her bowstring with a bit of beeswax. Without breaking her monotonous rhythm, she held the bow out of flames reach as Rijinn spewed bullets of ruby fire at his silver-blue sister.

"C'mere, ya chicken of the sea!" he taunted, tackling the silver-blue dragon into the pool of water in the middle of the dojo. The silver-blue dragon grinned beneath the maelstrom of bubbles, white teeth glinting maliciously as she activated her water breathing ability. Only then did he realize Bima was in her element and scrambled hurriedly out of the water, dripping.

Don yelped and ducked Bima's explosive counterattack, diving to Aireilei to land, undignified, on his plastron by her full quiver of diamond-headed arrows. "You called?" he panted, holding the egg fragment in the air. Saesha released her frantic hold on Don's shell rim with a snort of contempt regarding Iwansi's ridiculous behavior. Her sister stuck her pointed tongue out as a rebuttal to Saesha's silent scolding.

The white dragon gave him a toothy grin of thanks, snatching the proffered shard of yellow matter from his tail's grip. "Thank you, oh wise and graceful one." Aireilei squinted critically at it as Don got up with a grunt.

"I'm gonna go see what Raph's doing, 'kay?" Saesha adjusted her grip once more in preparation just in case Don had to take another disgraceful dive. The turtle checked for a cease-fire in the chaotic battle between the two grappling siblings before running, ninja speed, to the other side of the Lair and flipping off a yellow stone pillar to land neatly on the second level.

"Again I say it: show off," Saesha muttered as Don opened Raph's door.

Aireilei grinned at them before resuming her critical observation. "Well, let me see. If I'm correct,this thing contains a bit of natural magic," she mused, turning the fragment of egg over in her hands, putting her bowstring down beside her bow and quiver.

"Yeah, yeah, just get to the point!" Iwansi stood on her hind legs, bracing herself against Aireilei's forearm. "What about natural magic?"

"It's things like natural magic that make things such as birth without…uh, you know, possible." The white dragon scratched at it with her claw, holding it out of flame's reach as Rijinn launched yet another bombardment of fire on his sister. "That's how my mother managed to conceive you five. All she had to do was wait for the right moment and the right time before blowing a bit of dragon fire on my egg fragment."

"HIYA!" THWACK! Bima had just unleashed a rapid tornado kick on Rijinn, who went sailing through the air to land in the water once more. She dove underwater with a small splash, no doubt to get him where he was weak.

Iwansi gave Aireilei a quizzical look. "So what this means is that you're going to get pregnant." Aireilei stared at her, trying to contemplate the question intelligently, for a few seconds and began roaring with helpless laughter. All activity ceased until she waved a hand to continue doing their thing, still giggling distantly.

"No, that doesn't happen on Earth, silly!" Iwansi furrowed her brow and blew a stray strand of fur out of her eye. "But, if you're not on Haradris, I do believe the only thing it does is transport all beings with dragon in them _to _Haradris."

"So in other words, pack your bags cuz we're leaving."

"Well, not necessarily. After lying dormant for a millennia in that cave in Japan, it might've worn off."

She looked a tad disappointed. "So we won't get to kick Pastey's rear?"

Aireilei gazed at Iwansi for a while before speaking. "I suppose that's why we must go. To relieve my home of that slug. They've been waiting for my returnfor nearly fivehundredyears."

"Five hundred? Renet told me it was a thousand!"

"Time passes differently in different worlds, Iwansi. A year here would equal half of one in Haradris."

Iwansi frowned. "I'd think that Pastey would have enough time to take over Hardris in five hundred years!"

"Actually, we Haradrians are a stubborn bunch. If something happens and we don't like it, it could take a very long time to get the situation under control. The denizens are apprently still fighting back, but with fewer numbers than when I was there."

"So the days are really long then?"

"No, it's rather complicated. Maybe I can tell you later. Now, breathe a bit of smoke on this when I tell you to." Aireilei put the object of interest on the floor with a soft clink. Iwansi went down on all fours and tossed her head to rid her eyes of the obtrusion that was her long tuft of yellow fur.

"Now?"

"Now." A small puff of black smoke coupled with ashes floated from the smaller dragon's nostrils and once touched, the egg fragment glowed briefly before returning to its original dull color. "Try some fire." At the moment Don, Raph and Saesha exited Raph's room, Rijinn was hurled back into the wall, as was Bima, from a counterattack that made both go flying. Iwansi spat a miniscule amount of yellow fire at it and the shard of matter exploded into bright colors.

The two stunned dragon siblings suddenly began dematerializing on the spot and then materializing. Don bellowed a shout of surprise before leaping down from above, Raph following close behind.

"Guys! We're in flux! Grab somebody before you—" He hadn't a chance to finish, for just as he reached Rijinn, he, Saesha, and Raph disappeared.

Mikey jumped over the couch with a squeal. "I think we're crossing dimensions!" he cried, grabbing Aireilei's long tail. "Hold on to your britches!" Bima landed on the white dragon's lap, along with a drowsy Kiyo, who had no idea what was going on at the moment.

"Why's everything so fuzzy?" he asked aloud as they fizzled out of existence.

Leo ran out of his room and followed suit with a shocked yell. The only sound left in the entire Lair was Dorothy whimpering, "There's no place like home…there's no place like home.." after the hot air balloon left without her.

* * *

AUGH! (dodges a chair) Well, I didn't say it was going to be a happy ending, did I? And besides, you should thank me! I was planning on releasing it sometime in August! (household appliances freeze in the air and slowly set down) And about the 'Wizard of Oz', I honestly couldn't think of a different annoying movie to have Mikey watching. Sorry. 

LN


	2. Beam Me Up, Scottie!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the TMNT. Just the world of Haradris and all of its inhabitants.

A/N: Wow, guys, you really hate me for that cliffie, eh? (rubs hands together gleefully) Can't say I can promise any action for the turtles in this chapter, but you get to meet some intriguing (and rather humorously odd) creatures made up by yours truly! Say hello to Kyrunir,. Kiara, Sor, Ukeera, Dakari, and Watishi! (bows) Shout outs!

**2.**

Kyrunir's large twitching ears caught a soft giggle on the air. He grinned triumphantly and rubbed his wet, black snout. She couldn't hide for long. Not with Hunting Extraodinaire Kyrunir hot on the trail. His paws curved to grasp the slippery granite boulder upon which he stood, the quiet of the seemingly uninhabited Wompag forest around him. Suddenly the rukit teen lost his footing and fell flat on his white muzzle. A shower of green striped leaves drifted down from above and planted themselves in his thick gray fur. Growling with lost dignity, he got shakily to his foot paws and brushed the offending plant remnants out, wagging his tail to rid it of the moss that now clung to it.

Muttering curses that any rukit parent would punish for, Kyrunir adjusted the grip of his feet before slowly walking up the steep hill which now melded with the granite into a hill of firm soil dotted with aedil flowers. The little blue and white petals seemed to glow in the dying sunlight. Abruptly, he stopped and listened with large ears for heavy breathing. His keen hearing picked up nothing out of the ordinary, so he hurriedly topped the grassy crest of the small rise and slid down the other side, landing in a heap of rotting brown leaves. Kyrunir stood in the hock deep compost, hopping quickly out and making disgusted noises while shaking the nasty stuff out of his thick fur. _That's twice now that I've gotten attacked by leaves, dead and alive! _

He searched the dark tree trunks with practiced light green eyes. Wait, were those just leaves he saw falling from an oak? Smiling maliciously, the young canine slipped behind a nearby oljis thorn bush, carefully avoiding the foot-long needles. Then a thought struck him. What if that wasn't her, but a giant Roc? Mumbling fervent oaths, he dove lightning fast onto a sandstone boulder and leapt for the tree beside it. He missed and ended up smacking his snout on a sharp piece of bark. Whimpering at the sudden pain, he picked himself up and heard faint giggles. _Oh, so she thinks it's funny, does she?_

The insane giggles grew louder as he moved stealthily toward the oak in question, occasionally stepping on a squishy swamp slug. He masked his discomfort masterfully, until the rustling and giggling increased. Finally, it was evident she couldn't hide any longer without giving away her position further. "Ky, that was so funny!" his target gasped, dropping from the twisted array of dark branches to land in soft loamy soil by the trunk of the tree. She crumpled to the roots of the oak, laughing, and Kyrunir felt himself growing red.

"What was funny?" he demanded.

"You…falling flat on your face and then…stabbing your snout on a piece of tree bark!" Tears flattened the fur on which they ran.

Kyrunir flushed even hotter as his puppyhood friend started laughing harder. "Hey, no telling anyone about it, okay?" he begged miserably. "Especially Kiara!"

Ukeera stood up, still chuckling in bursts of hilarity. "Why, because you wanted to impress her with your oh so manly grace so she'll start training you like she did Huena?" The rukit female braced herself against the tree trunk as another fit of laughing took her prisoner. She wagged her bushy black and white tail as Kyrunir started back up the incline of shale, down which he'd just slid. "Please, he saved her life on the field! It's not like you'll do anything out of the ordinary like he did!" She bounded up behind him, snickering.

Kyrunir padded down the granite side of the rise, flushing with embarrassment. "It could happen," he insisted optimistically.

Ukeera rolled her eyes and helped him up when he slipped on a patch of wet leaves at the bottom. "Like you'll ever get the courage to jump in front of an arrow. Plus, you're too uncoordinated to train, Ky."

Kyrunir ripped his hand from her grasp. "What?" he asked, clearly hurt.

"Look, you've just slipped on a rock, almost stabbed yourself with Oljis thorns, and lost your footing on level ground!"

Deciding it was time to change the subject, Kyrunir said, "We'd better get back to the Cavern. Elder Maha'll be pretty mad if he sees we've been gone over the time limit."

She raised her shaggy head and squinted ruefully at the reddening sky. "It should only be about two hours since we left the Cavern. Don't be such a spaz, Ky."

"Spaz? I'm just being obedient. The last time we stayed out too long, he threatened to shave us bald with that giant sword of his!"

She waved him off and started walking, swaggering her steps more than usual, toward the setting sun. "Oh, come on! That thing's probably dull anyway."

"No, it isn't! I've seen him skin a teela with it!"

"Scaredy pup," she taunted, looking back at her frozen friend.

Kyrunir grinned challengingly, knowing full well what would occur next. "If we run like crazy, we'll make it home in time."

Ukeera flashed him a smile. "Then the last one home is a phoenix that hatched in the middle of winter!" She took off sprinting, Kyrunir hot on her tail. Ukeera vaulted over a rotten log and landed skillfully on a bent tree root, springboarding off. Kyrunir, being less athletic, slowed down and hopped rather clumsily over the log, landing with a heavy thump on the other side. When he got to the Old Bone tree, an incredibly aged willow dubbed for the fronds of whitened twigs hanging low over the ground, Ukeera was waiting.

"See what I mean about uncoordinated?" she pointed out as he panted. "Now, come on! The sun's nearly gone!" She darted to the right, through a dense web of ivy, brush, and fallen logs. Kyrunir took off after her, ducking an inconveniently placed branch. You know, the kind that when you run into them, they snap back and whack you in the back of the head. Both rukits had only run about twenty feet when a bright flash of light about sixty paces away behind a tree startled Ukeera into stopping.

Kyrunir, as a result of his obliviousness to the event, ran right into her and the kinetic energy, coupled with gravity, pulled them down into a sliding crash. "Why did you stop?" Kyrunir growled through a full mouthful of Ukeera's bushy tail. He spat it out, looked at where his muzzle had been, and cringed in surprise, leaping up and shielding his eyes dramatically. "Great dragon eggs!" he cried.

She slapped him in the foot paw. "Will you knock it off? I saw something over there!" The girl staggered up, bracing herself against a nearby tree trunk. "And golly, how much do you weigh?" Ukeera stared at him, waiting for a satisfactory answer.

Kyrunir shrugged noncommittally, averting his eyes from the exasperated female's. "Last time I checked, I was fourteen lynes." (A/N: A lyne is a form of measurement equivalent to ten pounds. Kyrunir, in this case, weighs one hundred and forty pounds. Heavy little bounder!)

"That explains it! Now, let's go see what that flash was." Ukeera grabbed Kyrunir's hand and dragged him behind her as she navigated the web of trunks and ivy. Kyrunir began to get visibly nervous with each step they took, resisting her grip slightly.

"Uh, Ukeera, what if it's a giant Roc? You can see a lot of those in the Wompag—"

"Shh!" Ukeera hissed, silencing him with a searing glare. "Shut up! You're as loud as a lily toad!"

"In my defense, lily toads are a lot louder than I am." He thought about adding uglier to that sentence, but left it out for the reason that Ukeera would probably admit he was a little on the ugly side.

"You sound loud to me!" Ukeera finally got to a large patch of oljis bushes, stopping when the thorns threatened to stab her if she took another step.

Kyrunir yanked his hand from hers. "Well, are we lost now?" Ukeera was distracted by something in the vegetation, it seemed, for he got no response from the silent rukit. "Hello? What are you staring at?" Wordlessly, his companion pointed at four dark, groaning forms in the brush, which immediately set Kyrunir off trembling in fear.

"See, that's what I mean! You're such a wuss, Ky!" Ukeera nudged him in the ribs. "I'm going to see if I can distinguish their species. They certainly aren't rukit." Her glowing eyes located a patch of bare soil and she skillfully leapt to it, landing clear of the hostile thorns. Kyrunir made as if to follow but thought the better of it. "Stay there, Ky, you'll hurt yourself!"

The boy growled in humiliation and sat down at the edge of the oljis thorns' reach. "Hurt myself, my tail! Of all the embarrassing things…" he muttered grouchily as he watched Ukeera navigate the bed of thorns. He stuck his tongue out and sucked it back in when she looked back at him.

The female rukit finally reached one of the larger, bloodied things, reaching out to touch it. She drew her hand back when it made contact with the skin. "They're not furry, that's for sure!"

"What are they?" he asked, his voice cracking.

"I don't know! Now hush!" She felt along what she expected was the neck region but was stopped by a hard section of plates that started at the base of the neck. Ukeera gripped the edge part of it and heaved upwards a bit, extracting a grunt from the unconscious creature. "They don't seem hostile."

"That's 'cause they're out cold," Kyrunir deadpanned sourly, scratching at the muddy dirt with his finger. Ukeera shot him a steely glare and he shrugged. Sighing, she let the thing down gently and grabbed for one of the smaller forms, picking it up easily.

"This one's light. Ky, see if you can catch it." Kyrunir stood up, mumbling incoherently. "Hey, wake up! Here it comes!" He caught the bloody bundle of flesh easily, but nearly fell into the thorns below in the process of being unbalanced by the sudden weight. "Well? Can you tell what it is?" Kyrunir shot her a sarcastic glance. "No, feel its anatomy, you idiot!"

"But what if it's got a little…thingie and I happen to touch it?"

"Oh, fine, don't feel around there!" Kyrunir ran his hands over the back of the thing and found some leathery protrusions extending from the area where the neck starts. With growing confusion, he followed the neck up to a pair of long, short-furred ears and small horns.

"Uh, Ukeera?" he whispered, nestling his package in the crook of his elbow.

"What?" she asked, exasperated by his show of fear.

"I think this one's a…a…" he stammered back, not quite knowing how to say it.

"It's a what?" Ukeera put her hands on her hips, clearly impatient with her friend.

"A dragon."

Ukeera's eyes widened in astonishment. "Are you dead serious?" A nod was his reply. "You're sure?"

"What else has wings, horns, and long ears?"

Ukeera gave a low whistle. "I thought they disappeared during Aireilei's time," she mused. "But then, who are these guys?" She pointed toward the larger things.

"They can't be too bad. They brought dragons."

Ukeera scratched her chin in the dark. "Can you find your way back home?"

Kyrunir snorted. "I've got a nose for a reason, smart one."

Ukeera connected eyes with him. "Ky, you need to go get Elder Maha, some light, and a teela. I don't think we'll be able to get the other guys out as easily as we did the dragon." Her companion nodded solemnly. "Watch out for Rocs!" she called as he sped away, the dragon in his arms.

* * *

Dakari yawned and stretched sleepily in the warm sunlight. "Well, Watishi, what do you say we get going?" he asked the nearby grazing teela. The copper-colored animal raised its large head, mouth filled with emerald green grass, brown eyes sparkling. "Yes?" She finished munching on the vegetation and padded slowly to her rider. The rabbit samurai grinned as Watishi nudged his floppy gray ears affectionately. The teela lowered her head and allowed Dakari to grab her short bristly mane. "Up!" With a sharp motion, Watishi pulled him up to his feet. 

Dakari told her firmly to stay there, giving a pat while he retrieved her homemade bridle from a low-hanging branch of the oak he had been dozing under. He grabbed the steel bit and easily pulled it down, showering himself with leaves in the process. "Open your mouth, Watishi," he began, brushing the leaves off his head with a grin, "and let's see those pearly whites of yours!" The teela tossed her head and gazed at him as he approached her with the softly shining leather bridle. Dakari waited patiently for her to part her huge jaws before proffering the hand-warmed bit to the animal. With the ease of long practice, Watishi gently took the bar of steel in her flat teeth, moving it to the back of her mouth. Dakari went around to the other side and eased the chinstrap under her cheek, sliding the needle into one of the strap's many holes.

The rabbit samurai adjusted his belt and swords with a semi serious frown before vaulting with a whoop into the saddle. Once settled comfortably, he checked the placement of the sun, squinting at the brightness of it. "We must hurry or we shall be late for our meeting with the elves," he observed ruefully, "and they do not like to be kept waiting. Go swiftly, but not noisily," Dakari advised as Watishi champed impatiently at her bit. "Remember, Xetyphaes has sentries stationed everywhere. My brother would highly disagree with me for this," he whispered into her twitching ear,"but be like the ninja." Watishi took the bit in her teeth and bounded away from the small glade, in which they had been resting, entering a narrow, rocky mountain path.

The teela checked the velocity at which she was traveling, veering hard to the right to avoid an untimely rockslide. Dakari patted her on the neck even though alarm was visible in his own eyes as well as Watishi's. "Be careful!" the rabbit warned as another pile of rubble and dust came to a halt, blocking the path behind them. He shrugged as she jumped a fallen log and skidded on shards of shale. Watishi nearly sent Dakari for a nosedive but used the rock wall to springboard off, landing neatly on all four paws. "I was about to say that if somebody was following us, they're out of luck, but you interrupted me in mid sentence!" Watishi responded with a soft moo-like moan.

Her small claws unearthed pebbles from the path, making hollow clacking sounds. She jumped a stunted juniper tree, landing in a patch of brown grass. "Shouldn't be far now, Watishi." Dakari bounced in rhythm with the teela's long steps. "When we get there, I'll get you some more hay. You deserve it." He patted the animal on her sweaty, muscular neck. Watishi nickered and sped up noticeably, taking longer strides. The walls widened out a bit, leaving more room for mess-ups on Watishi's part. She slipped on a slab of shale covered with sand and gravel, hitting a granite boulder on her shoulder and losing her footing on the treacherous ground. Only Dakari's quick reflexes saved him broken limbs. He carefully got off the heaving teela, concern etched on his features. "Are you alright, friend? You took a nasty fall there!" Her short, thick tail slapped the ground, confirming that she was unharmed for the most part.

Dakari yanked the reins from where they had snared on a lone branch sticking out of the ground and put them down. Going to the side that was covered with sweat and gravel, he inched his slim fingers under her back, heaving hard upwards with an exerted grunt. This quick motion righted Watishi, allowing her to stand shakily, panting. "Perhaps I should walk the rest of the way?" he suggested to the exhausted animal. Growling, the teela shook her head. "And I suppose you think that you can make it the rest of the way, with me riding?" Another growl. "No friend. I _will_ walk." Dakari bent over and took the reins in his hand, starting down the path with an indignant Watishi following, joints still trembling from the impact of her crash.

Dakari's sandals made quiet crunching noises on the gravel as he went slowly downhill. Watishi had trouble keeping her footing in most instances when they came to loose shale and fell over once or twice. The sun was going down by the time they reached an opening into a large valley of waving grass, trees, and a stream of burbling water.

Dakari released the teela's reins and took of her bridle so she could graze on the wet grass. "We may rest here for a short while, Watishi. I will see if I can find kindling. I'll be back shortly!" He started to bound away toward a grove of large trees when an abrupt and bright flash lit the area near the beginning of the stream. A yelling figure plummeted out of thin air and went underwater with a large splash. Intrigued, Dakari stopped short and made his objection to find out just what that person was. When he arrived at the deep pond, he saw faint bubbles rising to the surface. If he squinted, he could see the thing struggling in…TENTACLES!

"Watishi! Find a vine and bring it over here! I'm going in!" Deftly, he drew a katana and shed his chain mail. With a war cry, he jumped off the side and dove under. The bubbles obstructed his view somewhat, but he could still see the squirming form of his target caught in tentacles. He arrowed toward the monster and slashed one of its eight eyes, wounding it and clouding the water with red blood. His lungs started to cry for air and he had to abandon rescuing for a moment to catch his breath. Only a few seconds after he reached the surface, a slimy arm grabbed his leg, yanking him down.

Enraged, the samurai stabbed the tentacle responsible for pulling him down. An unearthly shriek split the water as the writhing piece of sickening flesh floated to the surface of the once tranquil pond. Going for the kill, Dakari rammed his katana into the monster's head until only his sword hilt was showing. The person who had dropped from out of nowhere was released from the nauseating mess of rubbery flesh, suspended by its own buoyancy. Growling, Dakari yanked his sword out of the dying creature, grabbed his target by the hand, and burst out of the water, gasping for much-needed air.

Watishi was at the shoreline with a green vine in tow. As her rider approached, she threw the line into the water. Exhausted, the rabbit samurai allowed himself to be dragged to land. "Thank you, friend!" He waded out of the stained water, the subject of question in tow. Turning the thing on its back, he pumped its armored chest until it began spewing water, along with small particles of food. With a mighty heave, he lifted the unconscious form onto Watishi's back. "Now, back to camp with you! I must clean my sword and find kindling!" He slapped Watishi on the rump affectionately and watched her trot slowly to a flattened circle of grass.

Dakari stepped out of the water, shaking himself with finality. He may be sentient, but the rabbit in him demanded that a vigorous shaking was needed. He picked up his mail, slipping the wet metal back over his drooping ears. He must remember to pile on the blankets tonight, for he would catch a cold if he didn't. And the elves' healer was already quite fed up with seeing him in the infirmary, plagued by some wound or sickness.

Sputtering water out of his mouth, he hopped over the stream and started once again toward the grove of trees that had been his first destination. While wading through the knee-high grass, he wondered. Who was that person he just rescued? And what about the monster? Never in all his months of traveling Haradris had he ever seen such a thing. Just another one of the growing reasons that Xetyphaes had to be eradicated; and fast.

When Dakari finally returned to the campground, Watishi was laying down, guarding their guest by nestling it into her soft belly fur. The samurai laughed helplessly at her show of motherly behavior. Whenever he was at the elves' secret haven, there was always a single teela that tried for her affection through bravery. It seemed, though, that none compared to the stranger he'd recently dragged from the pond. "Desiring one of your own?" She snorted at him as he cleared away grass to make a circle for the fire, still chuckling at her antics. He grabbed a large-ish piece of wood, stood it on end, took out his longer katana and chopped it in half. "Now perhaps we shall see your baby's features in the light, friend!" he teased. Watishi flattened her ears and showed her teeth to him.

Once he had made a sizeable teepee of wood and kindling, he crawled to Watishi. "Upon my word, but I've forgotten to take off your saddle! Forgive me!" He wormed his hand beneath the shell of the creature to undo the buckles that held the saddle and saddle bags in place, lifting it off and setting it aside. He rummaged around in one of the bags until, with a triumphant whoop, he pulled out a shard of flint. Five minutes later, he had a cozy fire crackling, its flames dancing along the sleeping face of the creature whom Dakari had rescued. Both he and his teela sat transfixed by it.

It was green-skinned all over its body, its chest armored by yellow plates of keratin. Its back was covered with an olive green shell. The legs and arms were well muscled, standing out with bold shadows in the firelight. Leather pads protected its knees and elbows. On its face was a still-wet strip of light blue fabric that had eyeholes and tied around the back of the head. It had three fingers on each hand and two toes on each foot. But the most interesting thing of all were the body parts that didn't seem to fit at all. For one, there was a long, thin, light green tail adorned on the end with a bone-ribbed fan coming out under its shell. Long ears of the same color were on the sides of its head. And for some reason, it carried katanas.

"Well, I'd say our friend here isn't from Haradris or my home planet!" Dakari finally said to Watishi. The teela arched her neck and pulled a large saddle blanket from under her saddle, giving it to the rabbit samurai. He took it and dynamically rubbed his ears, face, and arms dry with it. When he was finished, he looked like a spiky-haired porcupine with long ears. Watishi coughed, a teela's way of laughing. Dakari made a disapproving face at her, sticking out his pink tongue for good measure. "Allow me to take first watch," he muttered, standing and grabbing the bedroll from Watishi's saddle. He unrolled it and unbelted his katanas, laying the sheathed swords nearby so they were at easy reach. With a childish giggle, he slid inside the blankets, resting his head against the saddle. "I'll wake you when it's your turn," he told his teela, winking at her. She grumbled and rested her huge head on the turtle's outstretched arm.

* * *

The herd of wild teela scattered away from a tranquil-shattering flash, mawing and mooing loudly for all they were worth. Kiara started from her post by a tree near the edge of the plains, squinting hard at the distant cloud of dust. "Something happened out there and the herd doesn't like it, Sor," she muttered to her comrade. 

Her stunted companion nodded in shady agreement from his perch in a branch above her head. "Perhaps, but what on Haradris is making them stir up such a racket? Our patrol will be discovered by enemy group if they're not silenced soon." Sor reached behind him and grabbed the handle of his broadsword, pulling down his leather tunic with the other hand.

"So what do you suggest we do?"

He grimaced and pulled out his weapon with a muffled _shing. _"We find the disturbance. You still got that cloaking dust that Tor gave us?" he asked quietly, jumping down and landing lightly beside Kiara.

Kiara pulled out a small bag from her belt pouch with a bellowing sneeze. "Yeah, but my, it gets in your sinuses like nothing else!" The rukit sneezed again, nearly dropping the dust. "ACHOO!"

"Just get out your canteen, girl, and be quiet! You're lucky your former student Huena doesn't report us to the general!" Sor snatched the bag of dust and pinched his snout shut tight. "Canteen ready?" he asked in a congested voice. Kiara made a muffled sound that was somewhere between a sneeze and a laugh. "Oh, for the love of Yulakai, will you knock it off? Geez, somebody'd think you were just a green private by the way you act, lieutenant!"

"Tell me again," she chuckled, "why we need the dust?"

"Because it's broad daylight!" he cried as though she were insane, motioning to the sun-warmed brown grasses with a clawed hand.

"Oh, please! The tall grass could hide a full-grown quiffer wearing a saddle!" She frowned at his stubborn face until he gave in with a wretched pouting lip.

Growling defeatedly, Sor stuffed the leather pouch in his belt, stifling another massive sneeze. "Alright, but if we get caught, I'm telling the male captors that you're still a—" Kiara kicked him forcefully in the shin, cutting him off effectively, and he let out a pained yelp.

"You do and you're going to be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life, mister!" she snarled dangerously, baring her teeth. The gunghir muttered fervent curses under his breath, rubbing his injured limb furiously. "Now, can we get going? That's probably an enemy scout, Sor, and we need to apprehend it before it gets away!" She pointed at the milling herd of jumpy teela.

Grunting because of the still-present agonizing sting in his leg, Sor ground out a, "Weren't they just terrified and running around like rukits with their tails on fire a moment before?" Kiara nodded ruefully, shooting him an insulted glare, and slid down a steep incline of firm dirt, landing in a dug-up rabbit hole. Shaking her black-as-night fur out, she crawled quickly into the safety of the tall vegetation, motioning frantically for Sor to follow. He shrugged, wincing at his leg, and sheathed his oversized sword. Having not always been the stealthy one because of his wings, the gunghir made quite a bit of noise when he slid down the incline to join his patrol partner. Kiara hissed out a warning to the hapless, cringing male and he shot her a snort back.

It took them ten dusty, sweaty minutes to arrive behind the nearest grazing teela, and that animal, being untamed and wild, kicked out in fright with its hind legs and struck Sor in the shin – the injured one. Kiara chuckled helplessly at his expense as the culprit behind the forceful blow skittered off, mooing in confusion. Sor shot her a glare as she slowly stood up and slapped the nearest teela's coppery rump in order to make it move. It complied rather happily, taking the entire herd with it. Sor lay on the ground, shrinking into the dirt as the herd passed him by, stirring up dust. By the time they were gone, he looked like he'd been swimming in sand.

"What are you nuts?" he cried, on his feet. She shushed him firmly with a raised hand and parted the grasses with a shocked gasp.

"Sor, you might want to see this…" she stammered, stepping aside.

"What? Is it a dying squirrel or something?" he asked sarcastically, stepping up to her side. He started in surprise "Whoa, what are they?" In a large circle of flattened grass were five unconscious creatures.

Kiara knelt by the largest one's side. "This one's a female dragon, by the look of it!" She grabbed a white leathery attachment and extended it until it was stretched as far as it could. "Yup, dragon alright!" The owner of the wing groaned and twitched it spasmodically out of her hand.

"I thought dragons vanished all except for…her," Sor muttered, picking up a miniature, silvery-blue version of the bigger dragon. "This could very well be a trap, Kiara."

"And you're paranoid. Look, these guys are out cold. They couldn't hurt a fly."

Sor strapped the dragon he'd been handling into a large pouch at his waist. "I'm going to go tell the general about this. If they're not from Pastey's legions, we could use them for the coming battle."

Kiara motioned to a green-shelled thing underneath a yellow dragon. "What about that guy? We don't know what _he_ is." She pounced to its side and turned it over, nearly falling head over heels in surprise. "Jhadie, this thing's…" She muttered a string of odd phrases under her breath as Sor bent over to examine it. He finally stood, thumbs in his belt, frowning in suspicion.

"I don't trust that thing. We'll interrogate it when it wakes up." Just for good measure (and because she was feeling particularly angry with him for teasing her with the earlier comment), Kiara punched his bruised shin – the one she had previously kicked mightily. "OW! What the bloody claw was that for?" he hissed through gritted teeth, clamping the aching appendage with his hands.

Kiara grinned and perked her huge ears forward as he hopped around in pain. "Oh, shut up sword boy and take your punishment. You deserved it anyway." He winced and raised his winged right arm but thought better of it and bounded away towards the mess of unruly trees from which they had come, limping and yelling curses whenever he came across a hole and stepped in it.

* * *

Confusticated? I thought so. I'll have to get more descriptions on teelas and quiffers. I do have drawings of them that I am too lazy to clean up and outline and scan...(dodges a flying table) Alright! Geez, get off my case already! And more about Dakari will be revealed soon. I've got a feeling that you peeps are accusing me of taking Usagi and changing his name...Just so you know, Kiara and Sor are around the age of twenty-four in Haradrian years. In Earth years, they'd be...forty-eight. (grins) No, they aren't old. Thanks for reading and keep up the reviews! I love 'em! 

LN


	3. Inter Dimensional Travel is Bad for Your...

**Disclaimer: **Hey!(shakes fist)Haradris is MY turf and you can't try to get me for that! Plus, I only own the concept of that world, the teelas, rukits, Dakari, Kyrunir, Xetyphaes, Ukeera, Maha…The list goes on. So don't mess with me!

**3.**

_The sound of clashing metal aroused me from a dream…or was it? From what I could see, this was still a dream. I wonder if Donnie could call it a Nexus of dreams. Yeah, I'm that dorky. Well, he did call it a Nexus. I guess it's only logical that my dream have a point of overlapping subspace commonality. Whoa. I'm good. But anyway._

_All I could smell was smoke. Smoke and blood. Come to think of it, what else comes to mind when you think of smoke and blood? Yeah, a battle. I could tell the SOMETHING was going on. So, I opened the good ol' peepers and saw a battlefield around me. Don't get me wrong, I've seen my share of dead..er, Foot soldiers with slashed up bodies and such. But man, nothing compares to this! It was like one of those, um, whattchamacallits. A butcher yard or something. Alright, so here I am, standing in the middle of a battlefield. All of a sudden, this arrow comes out of nowhere – coming straight at me!_

Yikes! _I had no time to move, but it passed right through me! Talk about luck! Oh, wait. Hold up. I tried to snatch up a sword on the ground. Same results. Yay. More Utrom-like weirdo tech. Except this time I sure hope Baxter isn't here to pull that plug. _Man, this is weird. It's like I'm in some kind of history book…the cool Utrom kind where you get to walk around. _I bounced up to a pretty mean-looking dude. You know, the ones with the incredibly scarred faces and the bad orthodontia. I stuck my tongue out at him and punched the dude right in the face. Rats. No reaction. I guess that's better than being punched in the gut by a Feudal Japan Shredder and hitting your head on a rock at like, the speed of me fleeing Master Splinter's stick of wrath._

This isn't much fun, dude, _I muttered into the guy's dirty ear. You'd think the ugly orc thing would've heard of those wonderful things called Q-tips. The thing was literally filled to the brim with yellow ear cheese. Yuck. _Betcha you get slashed in the back in three, two one…_I looked behind me and, what luck, saw a screaming dog thing running up behind him, big meat cleaver drawn. The thing could've chopped a horse in half, no joke. Mr. Ear wax whirled around and stabbed the dog with a dagger, much to my displeasure. _Hey! I didn't actually mean it! Gosh, touchy!

_Alright, I'm finished with grouchy people and their personal space issues. I stuck my tongue out at him before tromping away over mutilated bodies and the like. I could swear I stabbed a foot on some spear or javelin sticking out, but, since I was invisible and pretty much non-existent, I could've tried to drown myself at that time. Leo would never approve. In the distance I saw a large castle. Wow, cliché. Battles around castles with ugly trolls and screaming dogs. Once or twice I just hopped right through some bellowing thing. Ever tried it? I don't recommend it. You see, after you come crashing through the ugly one, you fall flat on your face and usually get impaled with one of them sharp spears. And I'm not talking blunt, oh no. These things are sharp enough to slice a hair upon impact._

_Long story short, I finally managed to get to the huge double doors of the castle, where in the courtyard beasts a plenty were slashing and hacking at each other. I sneaked up behind a guy and yelled boo but he just slashed at an enemy apparently right behind me, his sword passing through my stomach. I grinned. Forget a dream, this was fun! Then I saw this big rainbow thing come crashing down on a tower. Call me melodramatic but I swear it could've been an angel. _What the shell is that thing anyhoo?

_I bounded through some bushes and entered this really long hallway filled with broken paintings and bloody bodies. I nearly hurled when I saw a doggie dude get maimed by a black griffin. His head came right through me and I went and barfed into a vase. I've played my share of gory video games, but this was beyond sick. I darted through a doorway and found somebody I recognized: Aireilei! _Hey, girl, what're you doing here? _I asked pointlessly. For one, her attention was on a midget standing by her head and two, she couldn't hear me even if I took a bullhorn and bellowed into her ear. Great. Made a fool of myself again._

_Midget Man had the White Destroyer on the floor and currently, WD was struggling with all her might to bite off MM's hand. "I've had just about enough of you and your unwillingness," MM snarled, smacking WD in the snout with his tiny hand. I bristled at this treatment and planted a kick squarely in his chest. Well, more like sprawled right through his little form and crashed to the floor. "Even if you won't cooperate, I'll get my army." MM grinned maliciously and rubbed his pathetic nose as I struggled to stand. "A dragon is what I've been searching for and you, my little friend, fit the bill quite nicely. This world will be my breeding grounds and guess who's the brood mare?" He poked WD in the chest. "Yes, you. And I…!"_

_Just as I got up, ready to tear MM's fool head off, a shingle passed through my head and slammed into the stone floor with an echoing smack. MM looked up and scowled. _What? Bad hair day, Midget Man? _I followed his gaze and whistled in awe. Sticking its humongous head through the hole it'd just made was the rainbow dragon, sparkling in the red sun. Now that, my friends, was poetic to a T. The dragon roared deafeningly and I yelled for earplugs. _Dude! Where's a pillow when you need one? _RD's massive paw came slamming down and missed MM by inches when he jumped aside and splatted on the ground, spread-eagled in all his glory._

_Apparently WD had been under some sort of paralyzing spell, because she got up and looked like she was out for blood. MM scrambled to his feet and narrowed his eyes. _Yeah, you put on the tough guy attitude, _I sneered, stepping up beside Aireilei, _but inside, you're shaking in your bite sized boots. _Oh, man that felt good to say!_ Whoa, I did an action line! Yess!_ I pumped my fist and Aireilei went down with a thud. _Hey, was it the action line? Because I know I can be a bit on the cheesy side, _I began apologizing. RD reached down and grabbed Aireilei. _Hey! Where do you think you're taking her, missy!

_We must depart! RD cried and spread her massive wings. MM growled and shook his fist. I walked up behind him and flicked his head. _

Too bad for you, Midget Man. You're…Hey, what's happening! _I felt myself disappearing from this world. _Aw shell…not again.

Mikey lunged forward with a loud, possessive yell. "AUGH, not the M&M's!" He was stopped short by strong, thin ropes around his wrists and smacked hard back into a thick wooden pole behind him with his shell, dazing him for a short moment. "Whoo, okay, that last step into La La Land was a doozy!" he muttered softly, yellow eyes rolling dizzily. He shook his head to clear the twittering birds from his flashing vision and rubbed his eyes with his somewhat short tail. "I feel like a hog tied pig."

The turtle looked around his surroundings skeptically. "Can't say I like the décor. What is this, Cub Scouts?" He was in the middle of a large teepee-like tent, his three-fingered hands held above his head by ropes attached to the pole behind his back. Mike frowned in confusion and maneuvered his tail skillfully around his side to grab a 'chuk from his leather belt. He easily grasped it by the steel chain and, sticking his slightly round tongue out in intense concentration, he raised the swinging weapon and smacked it against the ropes holding his limbs up. They snapped in half, releasing his sleeping appendages. His right arm slapped to the ground with a soft thud, numb from lack of circulation.

Having another head rush, Mikey swooned and fell over into the dark dirt. His vision went black for a split second before he saw more dancing stars. "Note to self: pay more attention to Donnie when he's talking about the circulatory functions of the body," he groaned from the floor, spread-eagled and limp. His long ears perked forward, catching the sound of hushed voices.

Two fingers pulled back the door flap. "Obviously it's feeling rather drunken," the owner grunted critically, shuffling inside. "Look at that position! I could swear it drank three bottles of wine before we found them!" Mikey's eyes rolled dizzily again as a pair (or was it three pairs?) of oddly clad feet appeared in his blurred vision. _A fellow two-toed! _the turtle thought with a slaphappy grin. "Yup, I bet he got a kick in the face from that possessed teela that booted me in the leg."

"All this guy needs is a good old bucket of ice water on his head. Be right back!" his unseen female companion called from outside, tramping away softly.

The person in front of him knelt down and grabbed his head firmly, propping it up on his closed fist. "You feeling okay, bub?" he asked gruffly. Mikey's eyes bugged out slightly in surprise. It was a pointy-eared person! Okay, not really. His face was pretty much human save for the long pointed elf-like ears at the sides of his head. Hanging in front of his brown skinned face were two, thick, dark red bangs and a rebel strand of hair that stuck up out of the part. His eyes were a deep maroon color with flecks of gray scattered around the iris. Mikey couldn't see the rest of his body but if he was thinking straight, the person was only holding him up with two fingers, a thumb and index finger. "Hey, quit staring!" he growled, trying hard to act masculine.

The sliver of firelight coming from under the door widened as his compatriot returned, the sound of sloshing water accompanying her. "Out of the way, Sor, unless you'd like another icy shower," she warned. Sor put Mikey down quickly and backed away. Suddenly, a gallon or so of freezing water was poured onto the paralyzed turtle's neck and he sprang up with a shocked yell.

"AH! Don't you guys know you can give somebody a heart attack if you do that?" he panted, shaking himself vigorously. White edged his vision and he swooned again. "Oh, man, wicked head rush…" Mike staggered a bit and regained his balance in time to rescue himself from a nosedive.

Furry hands steadied him. "Watch out, you'll topple over," the female grunted, supporting him by slinging his arm over her slim shoulder. Mike shook his head to clear the blinking dots and opened his mouth to ask a question but the person under him slapped a hand over it.

Sor glanced at Mike's helper. "We aren't supposed to be talking to you." He raised a winged arm and pretended to slit his throat with a clawed index finger. "Huena will wring our necks if he finds us over here. He's sorely festered already with us for bringing you and questionable dragons over here. He's planned a deciding match between you and Kiara to give you the right to speak."

"Kiara and Sor, get your butts out of there or I'll have you put up for insubordination!" somebody barked, literally. "Kiara, your match starts in two minutes! Hasten to the location, NOW!" He marched off in a melodious din of metal striking metal.

Sor snorted in contempt. "And to think, he used to be your student too!"

Kiara let go of Mikey and stalked out of the tent. "Shut up, Sor, or I'll run you through." Mike gave him a questioning look and he shrugged noncommittally.

"C'mon, little guy, out you go," he growled, nudging the turtle in his shell. "By the way, what's your name exactly? Greeny?"

Mike grinned warmly. "Michelangelo the teenage mutant ninja turtle."

Sor raised his eyebrows and grabbed his hand, leading him outside. "Uh, right." He poked Mike in the plastron. "You sound a lot like Dakari when you say ninja. That samurai's too friendly with the bloody elves. I never did like them." About twenty feet away was an corral surrounded by silent warriors of nearly every imaginable race. Some were elves, others were gunghir like Sor, and a couple rukits scratched themselves here and there. "Now, you win, you'll be able to explain yourself to Huena and the general of the rebel forces. You lose, and you'll be executed as a spy," he whispered as they approached. Mike gulped as he was shoved inside by the gunghir, none too gently.

Kiara stood on the far side in a relaxed stance, holding two slim battle rapiers, each one glinting in the dusk light. The midnight black rukit analyzed him with emerald green eyes, shifting slightly. "By hesitating, I assume you mean to wait. Permit me to strike the first blow," she said quietly, getting ready for a charge. Mikey pulled out his 'chuks, nervously surveying the spectators. Somebody outside the ring nocked an arrow on his bow and fired at a target on the opposite side of the arena. Kiara immediately darted toward the startled turtle, swords flashing.

Mikey gulped audibly again when she was on top of him. "Eeep!"

* * *

He woke to incessant bouncing that bumped his beak against something hard each time he came down. He groaned audibly and heard some one berate another for being so troublesome to her passenger. The reply was a low moo and the bouncing slowed down. Leo rubbed his stinging eyes and blinked. He was lying on some beast of burden, his tail wrapped manually by someone around the creature's barrel-like ribs and out the other side to meet his hand, which was currently clutching the bone-ribbed fan on the end. 

"Ah, so you are awake!" The accented voice that had previously scolded the beast came out of a stunted, dark gray rabbit that carried two sheathed katanas by his side. "How do you feel?"

"Like I got run over by a train," Leo replied with a hiss of pain as one of the bounces jolted his apparently cracked ribs. The rabbit berated once again and another moo came out.

"I'm sorry, I had no time to wrap your sides. The Empire's scouts had caught up with me and I needed to move quickly. If Watishi would stop jolting you so," he said with a glare of mock glowering at the beast Leo was riding, "I should expect your pain to lessen."

"Mawawoo…"

The rabbit samurai slapped Watishi's muscled neck. "Oh, you hush, you sadistic teela." She mooed again as Leo watched the apparently schizophrenic conversation continue with great interest. "I'll have no more of that. You may insult the elves' cattle stock with your sharp tongue, but not I!" As they continued to bicker in their strange way, Leo took the time to survey his surroundings. They were currently traversing across what looked like hilly grassland. In the distance were mammoth trees that grew larger by the second. The grass swayed in a soft breeze, making that peaceful whispering noise that one hears in a typically serene setting. To the west was the distant shoreline of a sparkling lake.

"Friend, are you feeling alright?" the rabbit called out suddenly. Leo nodded, snapped out of his trance.

"Where exactly…are we?" he asked, clearly disoriented.

He smiled and inhaled a large amount of sweet air. "One of the few untainted places of this chaotic world. Alorien plains, the outskirts of the elves' deeply hidden forest home," he said with a pleased sigh. "Normally on a day like this I would be riding all around, whooping like a banshee that I am, but," he paused, connecting deep aquamarine eyes with Leo's green ones, "you are injured and that calls for me to be sober, although my cousin wishes I would act like an adult all the time." His face split into a cryptic smile as Leo disentangled his tail, letting it wave slowly in the breeze like a banner.

"I'm a bit confused," the turtle explained quietly, catching sight of a small woodland creature chewing on a nut in the grasses. "You look like Usagi. Are you…related?"

His pink nose twitched and he looked away, resting his small hand on Watishi's rippling shoulder. "In a way. He is my elder cousin; I am the only child of his mother's sister. I did live on the same planet as he once upon a time. Back when we were children, we were quite close."

Leo sighed inwardly. _Poor guy sounds so dismal…_

"We played every day with bokken (A/N: Thanks, Boo, for telling me what a wooden sword is called!) behind the house and never wanted to be parted from each other. However, as time progressed, our different interests pushed us apart. Usagi went away to train under a ronin samurai far away. I never saw him for six years." The rabbit clutched his sword hilt until his knuckles began turning white. "During that time, I had discovered a love for mammals such as horses, mice, and deer. When he finally came back, he hardly talked to me. He always told me he had other things to do. So, once, I asked him to take me to the Battle Nexus tournament. He told me that I hadn't skills enough to participate. Hurt and stung, I ran away from everything I'd ever known and met a traveling Samurai by chance. He saw some potential in me and decided to train me for seven years."

"Mawoowa…"

He scratched Watishi's ear affectionately before continuing. "By the time I had finished and become a ronin, Usagi had already been a participator in the Nexus for three tournaments. I asked him yet again and he agreed to let me go there. I didn't do very well in the Nexus, getting beaten in the quarterfinals. The Daimyo, partly because he hates to see such fiery warriors lose, approached me and asked me if I would like to help a planet in need. I said yes without hesitation and he opened a portal for me, sending me here. I've now been here for three years and have made it my goal to eradicate Xetyphaes."

Leo was silent for a long time. Why hadn't Usagi told him about a younger cousin? True, he did seem secretive about his past, but why hide a family member? "What's your name, samurai?" he asked, ignoring the ache that was building in his ribs.

The rabbit stopped, his face brightening considerably. "I am Dakari. And whom might you be?" Watishi halted and champed at her bit impatiently, nudging Dakari in the rear.

Leo didn't attempt a bow, as it would bring lancing stings up his sides. "Leonardo."

Dakari bowed deeply. "It is an honor to meet you, Leonardo-san." He looked back the way they'd come. "We must make haste. I fear the enemy regiment will catch up with us soon." Then he walked up to Watishi's side, grinning up at Leo. "And you are too injured to ride faster. Fortunately, I do know a bit of the healing magic. Here, give me your hand, Leonardo-san." Tentatively, the turtle offered his hand and Dakari took hold of his wrist. His blue eyes shut and a soft white aura began flowing off him. The rabbit let go of Leo once he was finished. "That should dull the pain for a while. Now, Watishi, you may trot! I will follow."

Watishi's ear pricked forward eagerly as she grunted and sprang up in a hopping gallop. Dakari ran beside the bounding teela with ease, grinning as the wind whipped his freely waving ears around. Leo yelped once because he nearly fell off and grabbed at the saddle, clamping his hands on the rim as Watishi leapt a wide, mud-filled ditch and landed heavily on the other side. Dakari laughed as they approached an outcropping of rock.

"To the left, Watishi!" he cried, bounding up the plant-strewn slope as the teela veered to miss the incline. The rabbit samurai vaulted off the rock with a loud whoop, pulled out a sword and sliced a fruit from a branch of a scrawny tree, catching it in mid air. He ran to Watishi's side as she was still galloping and stuffed the fruit into a large pouch, winking at the dumbstruck Leo. This was his behavior? He didn't seem at all related to Usagi now. That wild yell reminded him of Mikey. "We're coming up on Alorien woods! Slow up, Watishi, or you'll fling your passenger into a tree!"

The teela nickered and dug her small claws into the soft soil, effectively lowering her velocity. "Very good, friend! I'm glad you didn't fall off!" Dakari commended Leo, who was still in a state of shock. "What, you noticed my odd behavior? Yes, I do have spurts of that every now and then."

_How on Earth did I get into the company of such a guy? _Leo ducked an overhanging branch lush with moss and hanging vines. "Where are we?"

Dakari frowned and slashed an offending plant frond out of his face with his shorter katana. "Haven't I told you?"

"Well, yes, but I meant what world are we on."

"Ah! A simple matter. Leonardo-san, you are in Haradris, land of honorable warriors and not so beautiful enemies of the rebellion." Leo's stomach did flip-flops. Aireilei's home world? Then where were his brothers? Where was Kiyo for that matter? Had they been sent to a different place? "Does that disturb you somewhat? You look rather pale."

"Dakari-san, would you believe me if I told you I was transported here by accident?"

"But of course. I assumed that it _was_ by accident. Controlled portals don't flash in the abrupt way yours did."

The turtle's gut wrenched as he remembered falling into that hideous monster's grasp. "Did you rescue me from that tentacled thing, Dakari-san?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yes. I saw you fall into a pond and found myself wondering what exactly happened. When I arrived at the shoreline it was already preparing to consume you into its foul mouth. So I did the only thing I could: I dove in and slashed it to death. A mighty bloody affair, but it had to be done." They entered a small glade, grassy and unnaturally quiet. The trees' leaves themselves seemed to rustle uneasily as Watishi stopped, allowing Leo to slide off her back and land in the knee-deep grass. "I don't like this," Dakari muttered suspiciously, putting a hand on his longer sword's hilt. The turtle unsheathed his katanas, feeling a distant twinge in his ribs. Dakari's healing spell had not lasted long.

Leo's long green ears caught the hiss of an arrow being fired and he dove aside to miss being impaled by the long barbed shaft. "It's an ambush! Take cover, Dakari-san!" The rabbit samurai paid no heed to the turtle's warning, instead charging headlong into the surrounding thicket. Leo got up and pushed Watishi into cover of vegetation. He dashed up a tree trunk and happening upon the ugliest character he ever did see, armed with a wicked sword and a dagger. Before it had a chance to stab him with the dagger, he punched it off the branch it was positioned on, shuddering at the sound of breaking bone as the thing hit the ground, gravity ending its pitiful life. He crouched on the branch, looking for Dakari. The rabbit was nowhere in sight.

Then, out of the blue, Watishi bellowed in rage and sprinted out of the vegetation, slamming hard into a monolith pillar positioned near the entrance of the glade. There was a grating scream of terror as the large pillar cracked and began plummeting. The impact broke the little monster's back and neck, killing it instantly. The teela snorted and backed away as the monolith crashed into the undergrowth, the whites of her eyes showing in fear. The ache in Leo's cracked ribs was beginning to throb and he could hardly breathe without hissing in pain. It wouldn't be long before he could barely stand. Grimly, he sheathed a sword and, using a sturdy branch, swung to the next tree, landing in a large notch in the trunk. He sat down in it to rest. He felt unnaturally tired, perhaps from pain and inter-dimensional travel.

A surprised scream split the air, following by a sickening thud of sword meeting flesh, and then the forest glade was once again quiet, save for the wind in the branches. Watishi pawed the ground nervously and raised her large head to gaze on Leo with concerned brown eyes. She mooed as he slid down the wide trunk and reeled to her heaving side. He grunted and sheathed his katana, leaning heavily against Watishi for support. Dakari darted out of the woods after five minutes of stifling silence.

He wiped his longer katana on the grass and sheathed it, wrinkling his twitching pink nose in disgust. "They were lying in wait for us and I fear there is a larger party coming our way." The rabbit samurai looked warily around, eyes distrusting every sound that was made. "We must leave this wretched place and find the elves quickly. Mount Watishi quickly, Leonardo-san, and bear the pain. I haven't the strength for another healing spell." Leo gritted his teeth and nodded as Watishi bowed her front end so he could get up without too much difficulty. "Quickly, follow me!" Dakari sped away through the northern trees, leaping a moss-ridden log and passing out of sight. Leo gently kicked Watishi's sides and gasped as she galloped forward.

Leaves, trunks, and branches all became a blur of motion as Leo's eyelids drooped like leaden weights. He was exhausted and searing pain wracked his sides every time Watishi took a long step. It seemed like an absolute age before they finally slowed down in the entryway of a small lake surrounded by roaring, sparkling waterfalls of all sizes. The turtle's breaths were shallow now, as every deep sigh brought more agony to his nerves. So he sat there in the saddle as one dead, not moving. The only thing that suggested he was living was his moving ears and eyes. The last thing he remembered before merciful darkness took him into its welcoming arms was Dakari, who was talking furiously and pulling him down.

* * *

Don's beak connected with rippling stone floor and he sat up, rubbing his sore snout. "Ow, that hurts!" He looked up and found himself sitting in some kind of cave sick room with white-clad beds. The one problem was that he had fallen out of one of them and, embarrassingly enough, injured himself in doing so. He twitched his long purple tail nervously as soft, padding footsteps approached the room. 

"Oh my, whatever are you doing on the floor, dearie?" someone exclaimed from the doorway. Don turned around and found himself staring at some kind of chestnut-colored wolf-like creature. She wagged her incredibly bushy tail once, clucking in a motherly manner and putting her hands on her hips. "You'll hurt yourself some more, child; get back in bed!" Meekly he got up and sat on the edge of a warm mattress, one he assumed was the one he'd previously fallen out of. "Under the covers with you, scoundrel." She shuffled to his bedside and lifted his legs up with strong arms and shoved them underneath the white sheets. "Now then," she scolded, pulling them up to his chin, "You stay here until Master Maha has a word with you."

Don lay stock-still until the fussy female had left, then sat up indignantly. "What the shell was that all about?" he muttered, getting back out of bed. He was sure that if the wolf nanny caught him again, he'd get an earful. "And who's Maha?" The turtle stood and walked slowly out of the room into a lamp-lit rock tunnel. The walls were wide and hastily carved, as though the inhabitants had been forced in here on a rather sudden notice. There was a friendly glow at the right end of the tunnel. To the left was the smell of sterile air, a place Don decided he'd rather not go just now. "Interesting," he mumbled, ears flicking back and forth to catch the sound of inhabitants moving around.

Then he heard soft clicking noises, the sound of claws on stone. "Don? Is that you?" Saesha called softly from down on the ground. The turtle knelt and allowed the small dragon to climb up on his shoulder.

"Where are we, Saesha? Who are these people?" he asked excitedly. "I've never seen or heard of them—"

She settled down and put her tail over his babbling mouth. "One moment please." She belched a glowing cloud of ash and fire. "Ah, that's better. The peppers I sampled certainly pack a punch. Now then, I believe we are in the company of a colony of woodland rukit. Nice folks, but some of them are rather abrasive." The dragon removed her tail from the turtle's mouth, glancing in disgust at it and checking for slobber.

"Tell me about it," Don grumbled, recalling his encounter with the nanny.

Saesha yawned massively before continuing in her serene voice, "Apparently some of the elder pups were out playing hide and seek when the girl chanced upon finding us in a patch of unfriendly oljis bushes. Nasty thorns, I wish never to feel one of them again." Don shuddered, recalling the foot-long thorns' painful bite. "Anyway, the boy ran back here with Rijinn in his arms in order to alert the Elder of our arrival. The caves have been in a perpetual uproar because of it."

Don scratched his head and leaned against the opposite wall. "So where's Raph?"

"'Contained' in one of the bedrooms. I'm afraid he may tear the entire thing to shreds."

His eyes widened in alarm. "Contained? Why?"

"He woke up, freaked out, and started going ballistic," she told him bluntly.

"Oh shell…he just had to go an ruin it for us." Don slapped himself in the forehead and groaned.

Saesha extended her claws. "I don't blame him. He's in a strange world in which he has no understanding of who's the enemy and who isn't."

"Once again, wisdom flows from your mouth," he commented dryly as she rustled her wings.

Saesha perked her ears forward and listened attentively. "Somebody is bickering around the corner. I suggest we see who it is."

Don put a two-toed foot forward. "What, and break it up? That's for psychologists, not a giant turtle and a midget dragon," he whispered, smiling sheepishly when she glared at him.

"Watch your tongue, Donatello, or I may just singe it off," Saesha growled threateningly, nipping his ear. Using stealth learned from his many years of ninja training, the turtle carefully made his way to the corner, emerging around the side just as one of the arguers bumped into him.

"Wah! He's right there! Hide me!" a boy shouted, jumping back with fright.

Don and Saesha exchanged looks. "I might take offense to that," the lavender dragon informed the boy, narrowing her eyes. The turtle flicked her snout to cut off her train of phrases and was rewarded with a puff of black smoke in the face. Somebody else giggled as Saesha left Don's shoulder with a flutter of her wings. "Pay no attention to him, he's a bad influence."

"Me?" Don squeaked, rubbing the soot off his beak vigorously. "I'm a bad influence? If anything, _you're _the bad influence, sharp tongue and all!"

"See? Temper. Children, take my advice. Never trust your tongue when angry; you might hurt another's feelings."

"_Temper?_"

"Oh, hush Donatello. You're doing yourself more harm with each comment." He grumbled and continued trying to rid his face of the smoky smell, along with the bits and pieces of itchy ash.

"See? They're funny, Kyrunir," the girl pointed out.

"Honestly, would a creature such as I bite?" Saesha asked innocently.

"Yes," Don grunted casually, still furiously at work rubbing his face.

"I told you to hush, Donatello!" Saesha's eyes glowed and the turtle found himself unable to operate his jaws. He was only able to make angry grumbles through his throat. "There. Now then, what were you children going to ask us?" Don glared at her. "Oh right. What were you going to ask _me_?" The turtle strangled the air in helpless irritability and stood there fuming.

Kyrunir, the boy, stepped out from behind Ukeera, fiddling with his thumbs. "Nothing, really. Maha just wants you guys to come and try to calm down the red one," he mumbled shyly.

"He isn't usually like this. Most of the time he never shuts up," Ukeera told the dragon on her shoulder.

"Hey!" he blurted indignantly, losing the shy guy act.

"Well then, let us go met this Maha of yours," Saesha said, throwing Don a smug glance. He pretended to slit his throat and she shrugged. Ukeera began padding down the hallway, Saesha bouncing up and down on her shoulder. Don, still fuming inside, walked behind with Kyrunir.

"Women," the rukit muttered to Don. The turtle nodded solemnly. Ukeera led them on through a bustling network of tunnels for what seemed like hours, but really was only ten minutes. She stopped in front of a silent room and exhaled slowly, as though she'd been holding it in.

The armed rukit by the door nodded and walked away when he saw Don, letting Ukeera pad up to the peep hole in the barred door. "Um, excuse me, Mr. Angry? Somebody out here would like to speak to you," she said into it.

"Does the phrase 'go suck on a lemon' mean anything to you?" Don heard Raph snarl sarcastically.

"No, considering I don't know what a lemon is." The contained turtle growled in his prison and punched the wall. Don tapped his foot and glared at Saesha.

"Raphael, you will cease this nonsense at once!" the lavender dragon barked commandingly from atop Ukeera's shoulder.

"Shaddup, Saesha," he grumbled irritably. "Where's Donnie?"

Saesha puffed some smoke and yawned once again. "Right here, although he can't speak at the moment."

"And why not?" Raph asked rudely.

"Because I have shut his jaws so he cannot make snide comments." Don let out an outraged squeal. "Ah, see? If I hadn't, he would have been railing on and on by now."

"Oh, for cryin' out loud, Saesha, will you knock it off and let the guy speak!" he bellowed.

"As you wish, but I don't see what good it will do him."

Don opened his mouth once the dragon had stopped controlling it. "Now then, where were we?" he asked dangerously.

"Watch it, sir, or I might just have to silence you for good." Kyrunir gasped. "No, not like that, my dear boy!"

Don snapped sarcastically, "Yeah right, the only thing dear to you are those preposterous Jalapeno peppers!" (A/N: I didn't know how to spell them peppers, so go ahead! Laugh!)

"JUST LET ME OUTTA HERE!" Raph finally roared.

"Ah, right. Sorry Raph." Don carefully walked to the barred door and lifted the wood holding it shut. "Come on out." There wasn't any need to goad the turtle inside; he burst out like a possessed animal.

"Alright, somebody's got some explaining to do," he growled, setting glaring eyes on Kyrunir and Ukeera.

Saesha bristled. "Back with you, Raphael."

Raph, easily seen as the avenging, blood thirsty beast waiting to strike, softened considerably to lessen Saesha's boring glare's effect. "Eh, sorry kids. Got a little angry back there."

Kyrunir peeked out from behind Ukeera. "N-no, that's okay!" he whimpered, trying to appease the anger management-needing reptile's rage.

Raph muttered, "And you call yourself a man." before joining Don by the wall and crossing his arms in a relaxed gesture.

Ukeera shrugged helplessly as Kyrunir bristled, insulted, and puffed his fluffy chest out in an attempt to look masculine. "Hey, he's right. You don't act the part of a male. More like a five week-old pup on his first hunting trip," she said with a grin as the rukit, visibly deflated, hung his head in shame.

Raph grinned, trying to appear friendly. "'S okay, kid. Not everyone can be a first-class butt kicker like moi."

Don nudged him in the ribs. "And you call yourself a ninja, letting your emotions blow," he grunted, referring to Raph's 'wake-and-roar' sequence while Don was unconscious.

"Hey, I don't need 'nother Splinter Jr. getting in my face, Mute-o."

Saesha finally broke up the bickering with a large ball of crackling purple flames to attract their attention. "Stop this at once, you two! I'd have thought sixteen year-olds would have gotten past this childish stage by now!" she growled through gritted teeth, holding the flames in place with telekinesis.

Raph grinned cheekily. "Yeah, well do we strike ya as normal teenagers?" His own mouth clapped shut as Saesha glared icily at him.

"Your turn to be Mister Mute-o." Ukeera found herself giggling as Raph tried to pry his jaws apart and failed miserably. "Now then, where is Rijinn, children? Have you an idea?" she asked calmly, letting the purple fire dissipate. The turtle in red grunted angrily as Don patted his shoulder in sympathy.

"What, you mean the red dragon?" Kyrunir piped up, throwing Raph a fearful glance. He shrugged and stood fuming as the rukit stifled a chuckle. "I saw him running around here somewhere. His back was on fire."

"That must mean he was annoyed. He usually activates his ability when he's feeling angry or just plain irritated."

"There you are! I thought you guys had left without me!" Rijinn bounded down the hall and dug his claws into Kyrunir's thick gray coat, climbing up and crouching on his shoulder. "Hey there, I guess you're feeling annoyed with Don, eh Saesha?"

"Most irritated."

"Hey!" Don pouted. "That's hardly fair! You started it!"

"He isn't acting like an adult."

Raph tapped Don on the shoulder and made some frustrated motions with his hands, signifying that he was ready to punch something, and hard. "Ah, I think we'd better find something to do soon, because Raph here wants to clobber someone," Don announced nervously, inching away from his evilly smirking brother. Kyrunir laughed at the purple clad turtle's expense, obviously feeling more confident now that he had a fire-breathing reptile perched on his shoulder.

Rijinn's fiery irises sparked. "I say we go and meet Maha. He's gotta know what happened and how we got here." Raph nodded in agreement but held up his index finger to stop the train of thought. He then smacked the wall with his fist and grinned in satisfaction. "It seems he can get his point across as easily as if he _could _talk, sissy."

Saesha's eyes flashed. "_Don't _call me sissy," she said, dangerously quiet. Ukeera rolled her eyes and began walking back the way they'd came.

"And why not?" the red dragon challenged.

"Would you like to be muted too?" Rijinn shut up immediately but once she turned to look around in front, he started making rude faces at her back. Don slapped his forehead and sighed in exasperation, following the rukits close behind. Raph punched the wall with finality before twitching his tail and darting up to catch up with his brother.

* * *

(grins) Okay, not too many cliffies, but I did leave you with a whopper on Mikey's segment. So how much are you laughing NOW, Chibi? HAH! (laughs maniacally) Good news, folks! I finally got off my lazy butt and outlined a picture of a teela, a wlfena which you have yet to be introduced to, and Sor! Yahoo! I'm going to try colored pencils this time, as computer coloring takes way longer. BTW, I'm doing a project in Math where you have to make up a game for a certain age group. Mine is second grade. I'm flat out stumped, anyone got an idea? (smirks evilly) With that, I'll leave you with my dreaded cliffies! Sianora! C yah! 

LN


	4. Annoying Elves and Brewing Battles

**Disclaimer: **"Do you own Haradris": Yes. "Do you own the TMNT": No. What gave you that insane idea?

A/N: Well, apparently I hit a nerve with the last chapter and you guys are probably wanting to kill me dead for those cliffies…soo, here's the next chapter! BTW, I put up pictures of Sor, a teela, and a wolfena. But, they aren't colored. Yeah, I'm still a lazy buttocks. And also, in the beginning of this chapter, Dakari and a friend will be speaking elvish to each other. The words aren't meant to be pronounced by you, so don't try. You will only succeed in tying your tongue in a knot. Just take a look at Saesha over there. (camera pans to view Saesha trying to undo the knot in her tongue)

**4.**

Dakari grunted, laying Leo's limp body on the gravely ground. The rabbit samurai knelt by his side and felt along his skin for possible puncture wounds from the ambush. Finding no such things, he sighed and rubbed his forehead. He was sure to get an earful from the elves about this one, and no mistake. It gave him a monster of a headache already, just thinking about the confusing conversation in elvish. For reasons no one could understand, elves refused to speak the common language, instead keeping to their own, which was rather hard to pronounce at times. In a way, it was better than speaking common; enemies would have no idea what they were saying.

Dakari stood again and stretched, laying a hand on Watishi's muscled shoulder. The teela mooed impatiently and butted him in the chest, nearly toppling him over. "What is it now, friend?" he asked, aquamarine irises brightening. His times with the animals of this planet were by far the most treasured. "Ah, do you desire some fruit?" Watishi stared at him as if to say "you're a bit on the slow side today, aren't you?" Dakari stepped carefully over Leo's prone form and rummaged around in one of the large saddlebags, striking gold right off. Or should we say, mush? "I'm terribly sorry, Watishi," he started, chuckling uncontrollably, "but it seems your treat has bit the dust." He held up a dripping mess of purple, seedy pulp and watched the teela's face contort in disgust. "Alright, you may find something else to do if you so desire, but be quiet about it!"

Watishi shook herself, a gesture that demanded her saddle be taken off. Grumbling in mock indignation, the rabbit unbuckled her straps and set the heavy burden down. She glared at him again when he put his hands on his hips and he sighed again. "The bridle too? Honestly, how will I control you then?" But he undid the buckles anyway and observed the teela, bucking, gallop toward the lake of waterfalls and jump in, creating a large splash that spattered Dakari with cool, clean water. Grimacing, he shook himself out and plopped down beside Leo to watch her play in the water.

The rabbit sighed as the leaves rustled peacefully around him. He would love nothing more than to make this moment last a while longer than it should. Watishi groaned and bounded out of the water to shake herself off onto Dakari and then to hop right back in. Dakari squeezed out his tunic and dripping ears with a pang of annoyance. Ruefully, he wished that Watishi had been someone else's teela. Why oh why did her silly spirit have to attract him that day? The samurai checked Leo before turning back to watch his beast at play. Where were the elves? _They should be here any second…_

A crack disturbed him, making him whirl around to see a male elf with blonde hair slip out from behind a mammoth-trunk tree, his gray eyes flashing dangerously. "Sehr ai wurhai pyeseisein runsei aney sephr eyru phrruer yeanp hati hseiyesei, Dakari?" he asked calmly, pointing at Leo with a pale hand. (Who is this green one and why do you bring him here, Dakari?)

"Hsei ai heryewur!" (He is hurt!) Dakari shot back heatedly in elvish, tightening his grip stubbornly on Leo's carapace rim. "Iru phrruer cuannruwur eyseinphr heiti zaaiiapsei." (So you cannot deny him passage.)

The elf glided skeptically to the unconscious turtle, put his hand on his brow, and immediately drew it back. "Hsei ai an ruerwurieyseiye!" he growled accusingly. (He is an outsider!) "Phrruer hajhsei seineyanpseiyeseiey eri atiti!" (You have endangered us all!)

The rabbit samurai on the ground stiffened. "Eyru wuraksei tisei fruye a frurula?" he asked softly, irritated by the elf's stubbornness. "Ruf curuerisei ei knruse hsei ai an ruerwurieyseiye! Aney hsei ihatiti _nruwur _eyru eri anphr hayeti!" (Do you take me for a fool? Of course I know he is an outsider! And he shall _not _do us any harm!)

The elf's eyes narrowed. "Wurhsein sehphr eyeiey wuraksei byeeip heiti wurru wurheii iacuyeseiey zalaacusei?" he growled, laying a hand on his slim elven rapier. (Then why did you bring him to this sacred place?)

"Ei eyeiey nruwur hajhsei wurhsei wureitisei wurru eyyeruza heiti ruff awur anruwurhseiye cueiwurphr," Dakari replied, standing up. His height only allowed him to stand at level with the elf's clavicles as he gazed sadly into his misunderstanding gray eyes. "Ei seai alairu bseieinp zaeryeierseiey." (I did not have the time to drop him off at another city. I was also being pursued.) The elf's eyes widened abruptly in alarm and he looked around warily, ready to lop off anybody's head. "Nruwur wurru seruyeyephr, fyeeiseiney. Sesei eyeiizaruiseiey ruf wurhseiti." (Not to worry, friend. We disposed of them.)

"Sesei?" he questioned, raising his thin eyebrows. (We?)

Dakari gestured with a finger to spread-eagled, out cold Leo. "Hsei aiieiiwurseiey tisei." (He assisted me.) Watishi waddled out of the clean lake, took one look at the foot-tapping elf, and shook herself out, showering both with water. She mooed and prowled over to Leo, flopping down beside him and laying her massive head on his rising and falling chest.

The elf crossed his dripping arms. "Alayeeiphwur, curutisei seeiwurh tisei," he muttered ruefully, thoroughly defeated verbally. "Berwur Ei cuannruwur zayerutieiisei heii iafseiwurphr runcusei hsei ai einieysei." (Alright, come with me. But I cannot promise his safety once he is inside.)

Dakari smiled and patted his shoulder with some difficulty, being his height. "Phrruer seeilala nruwur hajhsei wurru, Avialle," he assured. (You will not have to, Avialle.) Avialle looked doubtful but nodded and clapped a hand onto Dakari's shoulder.

"Sehawur ai hsei aeilatiseinwur?" he ventured slowly. (What is his ailment?)

Dakari led Avialle to Leo's side and gently pushed Watishi's head aside. The teela mooed, snorted, and laid her cranium on the turtle's arm instead. "Ei eyru bseilaeiseijhsei hsei yeeibi ayesei cuyeacukseiey." (I believe his ribs are cracked.) Avialle frowned, chewed his lip, and made 'hmming' noises. He felt along Leo's plastron, his hands a bright white glow.

"Phrseii, heii yeeibi ayesei cuyeacukseiey, berwur runsei ai cularuisei wurru byeseiakeinp," Avialle said with finality, rocking back on his heels and brushing a long bang out of his eyes. (Yes, his ribs are cracked, but one is close to breaking.)

Dakari exhaled slowly at the verdict, his tensed ears now relaxing. "Wurhawur ai bseiwurwurseiye wurhan Ei haye seiorzaseicuwurseiey." (That is better than I had expected.)

Avialle fixed his gaze on Dakari. "Tiaphrbsei," he grunted, getting up. "Sesei tieriwur pseiwur einieysei ruye sesei seeititi tieiii wurhsei tiseiseiwureinp.""(Maybe. We must get inside or we will miss the meeting.) The rabbit samurai nodded an affirmative and got up. With a whistle, he had Watishi up and yawning, showing off her flat teeth. Carefully, he settled the saddle onto her back and strapped it down, the teela groaning with annoyance.

* * *

Mike dove aside franticly as Kiara's swords came down on the dirt with a muffled thump. She recovered speedily and swung powerfully to the right, nearly taking the turtle's head off with her glinting weapons. A raucous cheer went up as the rukit darted toward Mike, who was a bit stunned from his forced duck. He had to duck another blow and kick up, catching her in the stomach. A series of 'boo's went up as he stood in the dust, shaking his head to clear the blinking dots. Arching his yellow tail as she charged once again, he slid skillfully through her legs and caught her right foot, pulling her down on her muzzle. He flipped up and bowed to a silent audience. "Shell, you guys are really one sided," he muttered disapprovingly, leaning against a wooden corral rail. 

He put on a sleepy look as Kiara charged feverishly again. Her sword connected with hard wood, not flesh, because as a form of mockery, Mike had slid down as though he had suddenly dropped off to sleep. Somebody guffawed as he crawled under her again, grinning like a naughty child with the jar of cookies in his hand. Kiara slashed down abruptly and bit his tail with the sharp metal, causing him to jump up, still underneath her, and literally launch the rukit into the air. "Gosh, guys, don't you respect any body parts?" Mike pulled up his bleeding tail and grimaced. The tip had been chopped off. There it lay, writhing in the dirt. "Ouch."

He put his maimed tail down and started twirling his weapons, growling, "Alright, no more Mr. Nice Turtle." He bolted for her, hopped over her head when she attempted to cut him down, and brought his heel down between her shoulder blades. The blow caused her to fall forward and roll, stirring up a cloud of billowing dust. Mike smirked evilly as the roiling cloud overtook him, hiding him from Kiara's flashing swords. He stalked around in the brown cloud until he was directly behind her, then planted a powerful kick right on her rump. She let out a strangled yell before whirling around and missing Mike's throat with her swords by inches. "Yikes!"

"Hold it!" a small voice bellowed. Powerful gales blew Mike's cover away, revealing him as a literal dust bunny, dirty brown and coughing. Kiyo landed lightly in the center of the corral, bristling angrily, his wings flared to the sides and his tail straight up in the air. "And just who gave you the order to fight, missy?" he growled dangerously, the question directed at Kiara. "Speak!" he barked, lashing his tail. "My patience dwindles quickly!"

The rukit, clearly dumbstruck by the little reptile's shameless show of aggression, said nothing, but scuffed her foot paw in the dirt. She muttered something incoherent before sheathing her swords, dashing for the gate, jumping the rails and disappearing into the surrounding forest. Thunderstruck, Mikey watched as Kiyo stalked toward him, green eyes glowing.

Huena, a dark brown rukit covered from throat to waist in armor and mail, snarled from the sidelines, "Back off, dragon! This is none of your concern!"

Kiyo whirled and spat a crackling green ball of flames at him. "And I'm telling you to hush, you overly haughty pup!" he roared, instilling fear into even the most scarred of the warriors. Huena turned bright red.

Mike scratched his head in confusion. "Uh, guys? You're kinda making a scene here," he whispered, jabbing his thumb at the dead silent audience. "And I've never even seen you come close to being this mad, Kiyo. What's your problem?"

"The problem," Kiyo said, clearly trying very hard to control his rage, "is that this fight was never ordered by the general or anyone else!" Huena held up a fist but Kiyo silenced him with one icy glare. "You, sir, do not qualify to be in your rank after this!"

"He never did," Sor muttered rudely from the sidelines.

Like an avenging white angel, Aireilei came down and landed with a heavy thud in the middle of the corral, looking as peeved as Kiyo was. "I've seen teelas with more honor than you, slime ball!" she bellowed angrily at Huena, nostrils billowing black smoke. "What kind of a rebel officer authorizes a fight to the death for entertainment?" She gestured at the stunned, wide-eyed warriors. "They may get bored, but they've already seen their fair share of blood shed in their lifetime! You are acting," she finished with a snarl of contempt, "like a bored and spoilt child." Dumbstruck, Huena flushed hot red with anger. "And don't you talk back to me, son!" The rukit growled and pushed aside his comrades to stomp away from the fighting corral.

A sting from Mike's bloody tail brought him back to the present. He clutched it mournfully in his hand, wincing again. Aireilei's angry mood quelled instantly. "Mike, you clumsy turtle," she scolded, "I thought you were a ninja."

He grinned cheekily and rubbed his head. "I was having fun with her, alright?"

"'Fun' is not getting your tail chopped off. You listen to me, Mikey; that tail's the only one you're ever going to get," the white dragon muttered, grabbing his injured appendage. He squeaked and by reflex, jerked it nearly out of her hand. "Hold still, wimp." She glowed briefly and Mike's pain stopped. "There, another battle wound for you, Michelangelo." He moved the yellow tail and frowned. It hadn't grown back. "What do you expect? You're not a salamander."

Grumbling, he sat down on the ground, long ears pinned to his skull. Sor hopped over the railing, nearly catching his foot on it and falling flat on his face. "Er, sorry about that, Michelangelo," he sighed apologetically, keeping one eye on Aireilei, who had crossed her arms in suspicion. "But Huena means well, he's just a…well, a teela hole sometimes." Aireilei snorted with contempt.

"And what have you to say, gunghir?" she asked, narrowing her flashing periwinkle eyes.

"Uh, only that I'm sort of ashamed to be in your presence milady," he murmured sheepishly, blushing a bright red and rubbing his head with a finger.

"Milady?" Mike burst out, raising his head. "I thought you were a warrior, not a princess!"

She thwacked him on the skull with her whip-like tail. "I'm not a princess, idiot. I'm a dragon, and dragons don't rule. We simply protect when we feel like it and never take sides unless opinion says so," she said as he clapped a hand to his head and 'ow'ed a number of times. Sor stifled a chuckle with his right wing.

"No, but she's a bit of a legend around here. The older gunghir have ancestors that were around when she was."

Aireilei seemed distant for a moment. "What is your maiden name, Sor?" she asked.

"Um, Lightblade, I believe," Sor murmured, scratching his head again and disturbing his long pony tail.

Aireilei nodded thoughtfully. "Ah. A worthy family. I trust you still hold your great grandfather in high esteem?"

"What, Tor?" The gunghir grinned. "Yep. He's pretty spry for his age. Can still swing a sword. He hates being ordered around and refuses to bed down for more than eight hours."

"That sounds like the Tor I knew. Though I am surprised he's managed to cling to life so easily."

"Hah," Sor snorted in amusement. "You can thank the eyasen flower for that. He found one, I'm told, when he was nearly a century old. Ate it and has been pretty much immortal since then."

"Bloody claw, those things are still around?" she asked in shock.

"The flowers? Yeah."

"Fascinating," the white dragon whispered.

"Xetyphaes ate the last few," Sor grumbled in disgust, cracking his index finger. "That's why he's still around, leeching off our land and resources."

The warriors around the arena began to dissipate with a medley of grumbles, and soon there was no one left. "Finally! I was beginning to tire of being scrutinized by those shady characters!" Kiyo bounded up to Mike and pounced onto his shoulder, Iwansi following behind, hot on his tail.

"Hey, get off him, you dope!" she growled playfully, tackling the green dragon off Mike's shoulder and pinning him in the dirt. They brawled in the dust for a bit before scampering out of the corral, still nipping at each other. Sor seemed perturbed and a bit perplexed by their behavior.

"Are they…hatchlings?" he ventured hesitantly, not sure if the white dragon would bite off his head or not.

Aireilei wrinkled her snout and shook her head. "No, they're almost as old as I am." Sor fell over in surprise as she continued. "However, they are like that for two reasons: one, because they hardly got to live out their childhood, and two, they have not witnessed battles and blood yet." Aireilei's armored stomach area gave off a thunderous growl as she flushed underneath her scales, turning pink. "Ah, have you any dinner here? I'm rather famished," she explained.

Sor nodded and got up. "Yeah, you should see the cooking fires somewhere near the general's tent."

"Gotcha. Thanks." Aireilei spread her massive wings and with a single down beat, was in the air. Sor and Mikey watched her disappear in a mess of tents.

"Soo, mind telling me what this merry little gathering is all about?" Mike asked wryly, nudging Sor in the ribs.

The gunghir seemed apprehensive. "Actually, we're waiting for Xetyphaes' troops to arrive."

"You're WHAT?"

Sor nodded grimly and looked out to the west, where the sun was setting as a red ball of fire. "That's right. Our scouts spotted a massive army not two days march from here. We plan to ambush them…if they haven't heard of us yet. We're all that remains of the rebel forces and we're dwindling fast. Deserters are what kills us." The gunghir clenched his jaw angrily. "They leave to fight for the Empire."

Mike rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "And just how'd you get dragged into it? You don't look too battle hardened to me."

"I've only been in the army for three months," he said, crossing his wings. "They were enlisting at our treetop village in the Darian Mountain forest and saw me. Normally, I'd run off because I'm usually pretty scared of any guys who look like they're drafting, which is pretty sad because I'm eighteen." Mike snickered. "But anyway, I carry this big sword around with me because I'm part of the hunting party and use it to do the killing with. However, I usually run off because it's just an impulse gunghir have right off the bat. We gunghir are very solitary creatures. We never like mixing with other species of Haradrians, which is often the downfall of our other relatives. A gunghir would rather fight on his own an army of orc than unite and fight a single orc." He shrugged and blew a bang out of his maroon eyes. "So I got enlisted and met Kiara. I was positively frightened when I met her. Those two swords she carries are usually what makes the enemy bite the dust." Sor wrinkled his nose in disgust. "But a month after I enlisted, Huena, who was still an infantry man, took an arrow for her and got promoted. That blew his head right up to super size and he's thrown his weight around ever since." He grinned with pleasure. "I'm actually happy that…his name's Kiyo, right?" Mikey nodded an affirmative. "I'm happy that Huena got ordered around by a midget, because if it were me I'd be a pulp by now."

"Don't let Kiyo hear you say that," Mikey warned. "He's usually mellow as a feather, but the word midget sets him off fuming. I wouldn't insult his size if I were you."

Bima came galloping toward the corral, yelling like a banshee and in a panic. "We're gonna die, we're gonna die," she gasped, ducking the bottom rail before continuing, "we're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die—" Sor wrapped his two fingers around her muzzle when she arrived, silencing her monotonous wail.

"Will you get a hold of yourself, dragon?" he growled crossly, releasing her.

"Mikey, Mikey, they're here!" she gasped, collapsing in the dirt. "Oh, we're gonna die!" she wailed.

"Who's here, Bima?" Mikey calmly asked the silver-blue dragon.

"Some really ugly dudes with jagged swords, ugly griffins, big bows with nasty arrows…oh, and a deformed idiot's leading them."

Sor's eyes widened in alarm. "They're here? Already? The scouts said they were two days away!" he cried, jumping up and down.

"Apparently not, sword boy. They've come to skin us alive, I'll bet."

"How do you know this?" he inquired, gritting his teeth.

"Saw 'em with my own two eyes. I was flying around the plains, checking out the scenery (rather boring; grass in all directions) when I saw this black mass of ugliness. Being the curious, cute little dragon that I am—" Mikey made a 'pfff' at this and she glared. "—I went to see what they were. First of all, there's this really ugly wrinkled guy riding on the largest griffin I'd ever seen, then behind him…ugh, too many to count." Bima shuddered.

"Jhadie!" Sor cursed fervently, looking positively enraged.

"I say, what would your mother comment on that?" Bima retorted, raising a paw and waggling it at the gunghir. "But anyway, to move your buttocks! Aireilei sent me over here to get you lazy bums. The General's having a meeting and Sor, you're included." He stopped his rampage, turned pale, and let his jaw hang wide open with surprise. "Kiara ought to be there too, although I've no clue where she could be."

"Well, let's get going then! Lord of the Rings has got nothing on this world!" Mikey declared cheerily, stuffing his 'chuks away and bounding toward the rails. "Comin', Sor the Bore?"

The gunghir recovered his brown color and scowled fiercely. "Sor the Bore? Oh, I'm coming alright!" Sor raised his wings, flapped down once, and was airborne. He caught up with the laughing turtle in no time flat, passing him up as he navigated the network of tents on his own. Bima, who was flying beside Sor, grinned and chuckled maniacally.

"He doesn't know where the bloody claw he's going, does he?" she asked wryly.

"Nope." The two winged creatures arrived at the general's tent, recognizable by the large red crest on the side. "In you go, dragon." He pretended to boot her inside through the door but she beat him to it, leaping right through the flap. Mikey, who was panting like a racehorse, clapped a hand on Sor's shoulder.

"Man," he grunted, gulping air. "Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to get into a dead end in there?" The turtle pointed back to the tents and was rewarded with a noncommittal "Nope" from Sor, who immediately entered the tent door as Mike squeaked indignantly outside.

* * *

Ukeera led them through a large wooden door. Inside the room was a massive library, filled to the brim with thick books, small books, books of all sizes. The rukit grinned at Don's dumbstruck gape. "Well, where else did you think we got our culture, Donatello?" she asked, flicking his beak. 

Snapped out of his happy moment, the turtle grumbled resentfully and rubbed his beak. "I assumed you were no more than cave folk." Raph nodded soberly in agreement.

"You calling us stupid?" Kyrunir accused as they skirted a massive table stacked with papers, scrolls, and the like.

"No," Don muttered. "I just thought you were—" His jaw clapped shut once again and he joined his brother in muteness.

Saesha glared icily. "One more peep out of you two, and I daresay we'll have to lock you both up." Ukeera snickered as Kyrunir whispered some snide comment into her huge ear.

Rijinn grinned. "That _does _describe them perfectly! I salute you!" He proceeded to do so, nearly falling off his perch in the process. Raph nudged Don, making a motion with his hands that clearly said, _May I clobber one of them? _His brother shook his head, had an 'aha' moment, and gestured, _They'll get their dues sometime or other, Raph._

"There you kids are! I was wondering if you'd gotten lost again!"

Kyrunir looked positively insulted. "Us, Elder? What d'ya take us for, idiots?" he growled.

"You sure fooled me when you were born!"

"Hey…that's not nice. It's not fair to blame me for falling on my head. Mother didn't have a good grip!" he pouted.

A gray rukit appeared at the far end of the library, a walking stick clutched in his hand. His ears were notched and he had a sort of sarcastic air about him that simply socked you in the face looking at him. His eyes were a dark yellow. "Brought your little friends, have you now?" he grunted, limping over. Raph, clearly insulted with being called little, growled and punched into his open hand. "And I see that you, sir, have still not learned your lesson. Though the silence is a bonus."

"My pleasure," Saesha muttered, throwing both turtles a glare that would've killed a cow.

"What exactly did you want of us, Maha?" Ukeera asked politely.

Maha snorted. "It's a wonder you haven't asked already!" He scrutinized Don carefully with squinting eyes before continuing. "Your friends here have caused quite a ruckus, dropping out of nowhere," he started, poking Raph in the plastron with his stick. "And the inhabitants of this merry little cave aren't happy with them being here."

"Are you saying…they'll have to leave?" she asked in horror, almost reaching up to grab Saesha and hold her tightly.

"No, I'm saying that they have to explain themselves!" Suddenly, Don felt extremely uncomfortable under Maha's withering gaze. "Well, speak up, son!" Don pointed to his closed mouth and shrugged.

Kyrunir sighed. "You have to let them talk now, Saesha."

Rijinn did the dragon equivalent of snapping his fingers. "Rats." The purple dragon took her spell off reluctantly.

"Saesha, if you do that one more time, I swear, I'm gonna skin ya alive," Raph threatened darkly, rubbing his jaw.

"Ahem!" Maha interrupted, poking Raph again.

"Geez, now we gotta tell the whole Origin story again! Thanks a lot!"

Don elbowed his brother nervously. "I think he just wants the 'how we got here' segment, Raph." He grumbled and grudgingly obliged. For the next ten minutes he was explaining their predicament to Maha, who frequently inserted snide comments and rude phrases. Ukeera glanced thoughtfully at the stone floor, scratching her white belly fur with a vengeance. Kyrunir went wide-eyed a couple of times and even gasped once or twice. By the time Raph had finished, Maha was rubbing his chin furiously.

"So, your siblings have now been separated eh? And Aireilei had returned! I was wondering why you dragons had come back! Now I understand!" He let out a childish whoop and slapped his thigh. "You guys have come to beat Xetyphaes' butt off!"

Don blinked with confusion and sighed in frustration. "Um, all I really wanted to do was get back home, but seeing as how we normally get dragged into these things…"

"We'll help if we get to kick some baddie butt," Rijinn burst out.

"My thoughts exactly," Raph said with a smirk, groping for his Sais. "Hey, where are my—"

"What, them forks?" Maha scoffed. "I daresay they don't compare to my sword, but you may have them back." He pulled them out of nowhere and tossed them to the red clad turtle, who promptly began spinning them. Don looked a bit forlorn until Maha gave in with a sigh and grabbed his Bo from under the table.

* * *

(cough) Er, sorry about the briefness of Don and Raph's part, but it couldn't be helped. I just decided to give more attention to Mikey and Leo for now. Nothing important to announce, 'cept I love reviews and well...I'd love it if you gave me one...(pouts) 

LN


	5. Oh, That's Lovely

**Disclaimer: **I own Haradris, but not the TMNT world. It's just a little universe I like to play around in, 'kay?

A/N: Whoo, it's been a while, hasn't it? (readers glare) Oh, yeah, let's see _you_ try and write three different places in one chapter without taking a century. Well, guys, I…hmm, what is there to say? Nothing exciting, that's for sure. Except for the fact that school gets out next Tuesday! YES! (pumps fist jubilantly in the air as readers switch from glare to stare)

**5.**

"Tell me again, where exactly are we going?" Don grouched, ducking out of the hidden Cavern exit. Kyrunir, who had gone shortly before him, caught a branch and pushed it forward as he passed. This motion inevitably came back to smack Don in the beak, forming a red welt where the leaves had snapped his face. He stood there, rubbing his snout as Ukeera held up a hand, signaling silence. She crept up to a massive tree, stepping carefully over twigs and other items that would reveal her presence. Raph came up behind Don, who was still rubbing his sore beak, and made as if to growl, but stopped when he saw Ukeera's huge ears twitching and rotating to catch every sound.

Nobody moved. It seemed like an age had passed before she turned around and nodded, a trigger for several deep exhales. "What the shell was that for?" Raph grumbled.

The female rukit scowled darkly, looking ready to attack him with her teeth for the impudent remark. "Raphael, unless you wish to be caught, you'll shut up and listen to me when I tell you I need silence!" she growled commandingly, turning around again. Raph made a rude face at her back, mouth contorted in an ugly grimace.

Kyrunir, appalled where he stood, looking ready to faint from his companion's sudden show of aggression. "Ukeera, he was only asking—"

"Ky! Shh!" Saesha rolled her eyes and reared up on her hind legs, sinking her claws into the tree bark. The little dragon scampered vertically up the trunk until she came to a thick branch sticking out, laden with brown leaves and nuts.

_What in the world are you doing? _Don asked mentally, the sting finally wearing off.

Saesha lashed her tail from on high, clearly concentrating on a distant scent. _If you must know, I'm sampling the air for foreign smells such as orc, _she said, alarming Don with her bluntness. _I seem to have found a band of some, but they're rather far away. _The turtle let out a nervous breath, hardly aware he'd been holding it.

"Well?" Raph demanded abruptly, nearly making his brother jump out of his shell. "What she doin'?"

Fighting to still his beating heart's spasmodic reaction, Don flattened his long ears. "She's scented a large band of orcs not far away. She says they won't be a bother if we avoid them though." He tried to deliver the verdict without putting an annoyed growl into his tone, but Raph got the message that he was irritated.

"What the shell is an orc?"

"Rather unsightly creatures the height of your leg," Kyrunir said quietly, scratching his thick white chest fur. "They're usually armed to the teeth and torture prisoners within an inch of their lives. Once a party of our clan went out to trade for food. They never came back. A few months after the incident, we found their bones in a ravine, riddled with orc arrows."

Raph looked like he'd been delivered a hard punch to the gut. "Oh. Sorry," he apologized weakly. "Didn't mean anything by it." Kyrunir shrugged and went to go join Ukeera, asking quietly if they were ready to depart. She scowled, muttered something, and sighed, shaking her head. Saesha came gliding down from the tree branch, landing neatly on Don's shoulder and settling there with a satisfied look on her lavender face.

"Yes, there are orcs around here, but thankfully, the rank lot of them are several miles away," she said, puffing black smoke.

Rijinn unfurled his wings impatiently. "Well then, can we go?" he asked, wearing the look of a bored little toddler who was ready to blow his stack.

Kyrunir looked up at the dragon on his shoulder. "Hang on a moment, Jinny boy."

Rijinn looked positively insulted. "_Jinny boy_?" he growled in shock. "Oh, that's it, mister egotistical maniac, I'm leavin' _your_ shoulder!" He leapt with catlike reflexes from the rukit's furred shoulder and onto Raph's scaled green one. "Jinny boy…hrmph! I've heard better." He grumbled some more, spat smoke and settled down to fume for a nice hour.

Ukeera turned around. "Alright, guys, we're going. Don't make any noise, or it's curtains. The Rocs around here have awesome hearing and can detect you within a moment's notice. Got it?"

Raph smirked knowingly. "Oh, I got it." He felt rather smug knowing that Ukeera had no idea they were trained to be shadows.

Ukeera's light blue eyes glowed eerily. "Then let's go. Follow me." She set off around the tree and ducked an overhanging branch, disappearing into the thick forestry.

He snorted in contempt and slunk off the way she'd gone, muttering insulted phrases. Kyrunir's ears drooped low, indicating he was in a sad mood.

_He's remembering his mother, _Saesha informed Don as they followed the rukit.

_Mother?_

_She died in the ambush, along with Ukeera's parents. _Now that he knew, the turtle felt sheepishly stupid and wanted to floor Raph for being such a piece of dirt toward the mourning boy.

_Would it help to say I'm sorry that I brought it up?_

_No. But he's getting away. Move yourself, Donatello, or we'll fall behind._

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered aloud, picking up the pace and hopping over a rotting log. Kyrunir seemed to drag his foot paws as he walked, bushy tail almost touching the wet leaves on the loamy forest floor. "Um, hey. Did I say something wrong?" He felt rage and helplessness emanating from Kyrunir in sickening waves.

The rukit shook his head, ears flopping back and forth. "No, Don, you didn't. I just…" He stopped and sighed. "I'm tired of hiding, tired of being helpless, tired of having no say in what I do!" he growled, tears beginning to form and pool in his eyes. "I hate being a wimp, being picked on, having no mom, hate this stupid Empire, and…and I'm sick and tired of my life!" That was all it took before the waterworks began to function. Don felt himself wanting to reach out to his broken soul, to put the scattered pieces of his happiness back together, to comfort the kid. But somehow, anger stayed his hand. How unfair was it that children had to hide away in a cave? That they never got to experience play with friends other than the ones they'd had from birth. He gritted his teeth and forced himself not to punch the tree next to him, instead growling.

Kyrunir didn't sob once. He just walked along, letting the tears flow, and took it like a man. Saesha, who always comforted Don when he was in need of balm for his anger, launched her tiny form off his shoulder and landed on Kyrunir's. Her eyes glowed and Don felt an immediate halt to the rukit's emotion flow. She was communicating mentally with him, and clearly didn't want Don listening in, because there was an arcane barrier around her mind. The turtle stopped to let the two talk in peace.

He rotated his ears around a couple of times to catch the medley of animal noises around him. Once his sharp hearing even caught a wolf-like howl on the air. _Hm, scratching…might be a rodent searching for seeds in the undergrowth…ooh, bird call!_ A loud, grating screech pierced the peaceful silence, startling Don again, and making him jump up at least ten feet. Kyrunir and Saesha both snapped out of their trance too.

The rukit's eyes widened with panic. "Uh-oh…jhadie, it's a Roc!" he cried, immediately bolting into a random direction.

"Hey!" Don jumped up and darted after him, grabbing the bunch of loose skin on the back of his neck and pulling to stop his frightened flight. "Calm down, Kyrunir! Now, what's a Roc?"

He pointed with nameless fear. "T-that!" Don turned around and paled within a second. An enormous, chestnut-colored bird had cut off their path back! It was about seven feet tall, its feet sporting huge, serrated onyx talons that looked quite deadly, even to a tree. The Roc's black beak was jagged and sharp, and at the moment, open and ready to eat some turtle. And its beady eyes followed every panicked move Kyrunir made. "W-we've gotta r-run for it!" he stammered, struggling in Don's strong grip. Saesha's eyes glowed as she attempted to pin it to the ground through telekinesis, but the giant bird was unaffected. "That's w-why I said r-run! M-magic doesn't w-work on R-rocs!"

Suddenly Don felt _very_ small and uncomfortable. "He's cut off our only escape!" he whispered. True; they were hemmed in on all sides by fallen trees, oljis thorn bushes, and thick vegetation, impenetrable without a blade of some sort (A/N: And a suit of armor for them extremely unfriendly oljis thorns). "We can't run now!" He let go of the gray rukit and pulled out his Bo, cautiously advancing on the twitching bird. "Okay, take it easy now, I don't want to…YIKES!" He hopped nimbly to the side as the Roc's beak skewered the loamy soil on which he had been standing. "Okay, you wanna fight? Then fight I shall!" Inwardly, he was thinking _I've fought a giant dragon before…how hard can it be fighting a giant chicken? _

With a thunderous war cry, he jumped forward, staff raised, and brought it down hard on the bird's foot. Roccy (A/N: as I shall call him) squawked in rage and butted Don in the plastron with its head, sending him flying into a tree. Dazed, the turtle sat there, head swimming, as the predator waddled toward him. He found himself unable to move as the black beak opened and slowly moved toward him. _Oh shell…_

* * *

"Good! You're here!" The creamy white rukit general acknowledged Sor and Mikey with a curt nod. "Now then, Michelangelo…" The turtle gulped, expecting rebuke from the slightly plump military commander. "I am aware that you can fight to some degree. Will you help us?" 

He smiled nervously. "Course I will, dude!" he replied, fighting the insane urge to run out of the tent. Something about this guy just spooked him.

"And you, Sor," he said in a fatherly tone. "I will apologize for my previous behavior regarding the dragons and Michelangelo." The gunghir scuffed his foot in the dirt and murmured a soft, "thanks" before flushing red.

Kiyo, who was sitting on the wooden table in the center of the large tent, puffed a bit of smoke. "I'm going to point out that every single one of us knows how to fight, General Knami," he said quietly. "And though most may not see use for the wind, I can help in ways your mages could not."

"Example," Knami replied, crossing his arms as if challenging Kiyo's ingenuity.

"I can conjure a storm," he answered simply, flaring his wings.

He scratched his chin thoughtfully as Mikey forced down his need to gape with shock. Sor was already standing there with his jaw hanging. "Well, that's all well and good, Kiyo, but what can Bima and Iwansi do?" he asked, wagging his bushy tail once.

"Bima can swim underwater without having to come up for air, and Iwansi can make herself, and any breathing thing she touches, invisible for as long as needed." Aireilei supplied the information with a wicked smile. "And I must say, I'm rather eager to help out. All these years being away have made me go soft," the white dragon declared, grinning evilly. Knami coughed out a belly laugh that made his stomach ache. "By the way, Kiyo, do you have any idea how a storm is made?" He glared at her, his anger from the corral still smoldering uneasily. "You will need water and fire mages, because to make a cloud, one needs particles for the water to condense on. So, maybe all we need are those two mages. You, however, will need to blow those particles into the troposphere so the water mage can use moisture in the air to condense. Every time you are in need of more particles, the fire mage can make ashes."

Kiyo stood up and lashed his long tail. "In that case, I shall find them and set them straight to work!" He launched off the table, and shot out the door on wings as Sor gaped some more. Mikey just stood there, unsure of what to do.

"Mike? You okay? You seem…perturbed."

"Are you sure I'll do well? I mean, this _is _my first real battle," he mumbled, blushing with embarrassment.

"You'll be fine. I'll have Sor and Kiara partner up with you," Knami told him. "But now, where are Iwansi and Bima? I have instructions for them."

Sor recovered from his gaping spell, replacing it with a perplexed look. "The silvery blue dragon? She came in here with us, I thought…"

Aireilei closed her eyes and snapped them open again. "They were seeing how far away the army was. I have told them to come back immediately. They're on their way."

"Ah! Thank you, Aireilei!" Knami bowed and straightened up. "Sor, would you go and equip Michelangelo?"

"Ah, no, that's okay!" Mike blurted. "I'll be fine!" The creamy white rukit frowned.

"That's alright, General. He has the reflexes of a covey with hot feet," Aireilei assured, trying to calm Mike. The turtle was nearly dancing with the need to get out of Knami's presence. "Something wrong, Mikey?"

He grimaced urgently. "Nature calls!" And with that, he bolted frantically out of the tent, leaving Aireilei in complete hysterics.

Knami and Sor, however, didn't get it, and were looking very confused. "What in the name of Yulakai did he just mean?" Knami asked, furrowing his brow and frowning.

Aireilei laughed so hard she almost fell over and knocked down an array of sharp, _pointy_ weapons. "It…means," she started, gasping for air, "That he has to…go!" Another fit of guffaws took the white dragon captive as it finally dawned on Sor.

"Ohh…_that_," he said with reverence, nodding. Knami was still in the dark, frowning as Sor began to chuckle and Aireilei's faded.

"Humph. Rubbish," he snorted, resting his hand on his long sword's hilt.

Kiara thrust the flap aside as she marched inside, looking fully and utterly ashamed of herself. The black rukit stepped up to Aireilei and muttered contritely, "Ei ati seiwurseiyenalalaphr iruyeyephr." (I am eternally sorry.) Knami, clearly not fluent in the language of the elves, scratched his head and mumbled something about not telling everybody else in common.

Aireilei bowed and replied, "Phrruer ayesei fruyepeijhsein." (You are forgiven.)

Knami glanced at the two alternately before making a huffing noise. "Ah, Kiara! Don't worry about it, girl, you're alright!" he said. Apparently, it was just a guess at what the rukit said to Aireilei, for he still wore a confused face. Kiara nodded slightly as Knami took on an angrier countenance. "It's that butterball _Huena_ I must speak with. He has abused his post for far too long now."

Disgusted, Aireilei agreed with a fervent, "Aeiyehseiaey," before lashing her long tail and exiting the tent.

"What'd she say?"

Kiara smiled with a weary chuckle. "Airhead."

"Ah. I really must get a translator for this rubbish someday," said Knami, hooking his thumbs in his belt. "Can't understand a word the elven recruits say."

"You can't understand them even though you've been commanding them for five years?" Sor asked.

"But of course not!" he snorted. "If I tried learning that load of poppycock, I'd be tongue-tied! No, I only understand good old Common talk."

Kiara nodded politely. "General, I'm off to get my armor." She gazed at her male companion. "Sor, you ought to come too. You need help getting outfitted."

Sor glanced sheepishly at his two winged arms. "Uh, yeah. Can't very well get my chain mail on on my own," said the gunghir, shrugging. The rukit grabbed the tent flap and held it aside as Knami waltzed out, dignified, followed by Sor, who was still in shock from being summoned to his commander's quarters.

Once outside, Bima greeted them with a triumphant squawk. "Hey, I've been looking for you lazy lumpkins!" she said, flaring her wings. "Come on, you've gotta see Kiyo workin' with those green mages over there! Hah! Wouldn't know a storm if it came up and bit 'em in the butt."

Knami coughed. "I say, that's rather unfair, miss. Narii and Folla have hardly had any time to prepare!" he defended.

"Oh, sure. Says the gaffer who probably knows nothing about magic."

The cream white rukit glared, then averted his eyes. "You're right on that account; I can't even light a bloody candle." Kiara found herself giggling at the abashed Knami's expense. "On with you two," he commanded, shoving Sor and Kiara away towards the maze of tents. "Unless you're fixing to get punctured with an orc arrow, you'd better get equipped now!"

When they arrived at the armory, most of the warriors had already left. As Sor rummaged around in a large trunk for gunghir mail, Kiara slipped on a leather tunic over her coat of chain mail. The rukit put steel greaves on her legs to protect from attacks from enemy pike men. "Kiara? Little help here?" Sor squeaked. Kiara turned around and burst out laughing. Sor had attempted to get the tricky mail on by himself but was tangled in the belt.

"You never learn, do you?" she asked, going behind him to remove his sword. "If you'd taken this bulky thing off first, you would've been fine, silly." She put it on the ground and untangled the mail from his arms. Gunghir mail is made differently than other mail. Because of the skin that comes off the winged arms and attaches at the edge of the ribs, a regular coat of mail would be impossible to get on. Gunghir mail has a head hole and a belt running around the bottom. To get it on, you unbuckle the belt and slip the chain mail over the gunghir's head and buckle it under the wing flap. "There, now for the tunic." Kiara reached into the chest and pulled out Sor's personal favorite, a brown tunic with a pair of black wings on the front. She slipped it on the same way the mail went.

"Personally, I'd rather go shirtless," he muttered, tugging his shorts up in annoyance. She chuckled and pulled on some steel plate-backed gauntlets. "Do you really think that the dragons will be any help? They're kind of small…" he said doubtfully as Kiara strapped on gold-flanged vambraces to her forearms.

"Were you even paying attention when Kiyo blasted me off the ground with wind?" she asked crossly. "Don't you get it? They're mages, Sor, and mages are bloody hard to put down." The rukit finished up by buckling her two thin rapiers on, one on each side. "Now, are you ready?"

Sor looked himself over. "Well, let's see here…I can't put on my greaves because my arms are pretty much unmaneuverable…"

"Oh, quit it, you whiner. They aren't wooden boards you know." He grumbled and put on the guards clumsily. "Now, let's go see the action. I think I can hear Kiyo's winds."

Mikey almost bumped into them when they came out. "Oh, hey guys!" he said.

"Relieved yourself I see," Sor snickered. Kiara, who had not been in the tent when the turtle had bolted for a bush, looked confused. "He had to…um, how shall I put this?"

"No, I get it," Kiara said hurriedly, clearly not wanting to further the subject.

"Man, have you guys seen what Kiyo's doin'?" Mikey asked, stretching.

"We're on our way over there, Mike."

"Look up there then." He pointed with a square finger at a swirling gray cloud that was growing bigger by the second. Flashes of lightning flickered in the cumulonimbus cloud (A/N: Otherwise known as a thunderhead.), some even emerging to smash the plains with their fury.

Sor flinched as a patch of grass got incinerated by a bolt. "Will that hit us?"

"Naw, I think the plan's to have Kiyo keep the thing at bay with wind. Them orcs are going to get mighty wet though." Thunder rumbled in the distance and Sor whistled appreciatively.

Iwansi landed in front of them, imprinting the sandy dirt with claw marks. "Will you guys move it already? That smelly ol' army is almost here!" Sor seemed transfixed by her titanium leg. She noticed. "Quit that staring, mister. Act like you haven't seen an artificial limb before…"

"What happened to you?" he asked tentatively.

The yellow dragon made a face. "Basilisk. Stupid moron ambushed us in the Dream Realm while we were looking for an old friend."

"Yikes."

Kiara tugged impatiently on Sor's ponytail and bounded down to the tree line, where the warriors were stationed in long lines. Mike sprinted after her, whooping like a madman and striking Sor dumb. "What a weirdo, huh?" Iwansi said, launching into the sky to follow by air.

A grimy-sounding horn reached his ears and a thunderous war cry went up amongst the rebel troops. The battle had begun.

* * *

"Leonardo-san, wake up please!" 

He groaned and turned over. He felt horrible and his face was burning. "What?" he asked, blinking as his vision focused.

A cool rag was pressed to his forehead. "You must arise, Leonardo-san. We are ready to depart from Aloria," Dakari said softly, patting his carapace. "And," he added, "Watishi is becoming unbearably agonized over you." Leo chuckled shallowly. "How do you feel?"

He turned back onto his plastron. "Tired," he replied with a yawn.

"That is what the healer expected. Realm traveling throws one's self for a spin." The turtle rubbed his eyes and gazed around. He was in a…tree? That's what it looked like. Beams of softly glowing ivory wood ached gracefully above his bed to form a dome through which warm sunlight streamed. Outside, branches rustled in a light breeze that entered the room, blowing across Leo's beak and filling his lungs with a sweet, flowery scent. The bed on which he was sprawled was exceedingly soft, as if he were sleeping on air. "It is called heather," Dakari said with a small smile, "and it does a body good to rest upon." The turtle nodded stiffly in agreement before seeing a slim elf maiden glide into the fanciful room.

She was one of those people you see in a fairytale, perfect and unmarred. She was clothed in a red and white gown that brushed the wood floor. The neckline scooped low, revealing a silver chain going around her neck. Her sleeves were wide and funnel-like. They were tapered near the shoulder but wide near the hands. "Watishi has been prepared, Dakari," she said quietly in a voice that sounded like a chorus of starlings.

The rabbit got up and bowed low. "Thank you, Hannalei, you have been most hospitable." Seeing Leo's perplexed stare, Hannale smiled kindly.

"You have never been to this world, Dakari tells me." He nodded mutely. "And yet, you have the tail and ears of a dragon," she pointed out, her raven colored hair sliding over her shoulder in a shimmering cascade. "How is that possible?"

Leo sat up on the edge of his bed, deciding he looked rather ridiculous on his stomach. "I am friends with a group of dragons, lady," he mumbled, raising his tail and wrapping it around the bedpost. "But I have no idea where they or my brothers are at the moment."

"I see. So there are others like you?" Another mute nod. Hannalei stepped forward and gently grabbed his chin, raising his face to eye level. "Little one, you need not fear me." Leo blushed as her emerald eyes searched his. "Dakari will help you find your siblings and friends."

Dakari's eyes grew flinty. "I have a desire to meet Aireilei as well," he said fiercely.

Hannalei drew away gracefully. "Leonardo, I have had a teela prepared for you as well. Neither of you shall walk. I must go now, but farewell." She glided out the door.

Dakari took on a sly countenance and nudged the flushing turtle playfully. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were in love, Leonardo-san," he teased. Leo felt himself growing hot with embarrassment. "And I thought Watishi was a hopeless cause. But come! To the stables!" He held out his hand and pulled the red turtle up. "Oh, and I took the liberty of cleaning your katanas for you. They were rather dirty." The rabbit held out the two sheathed swords and Leo strapped them on before following Dakari out the door.

He found himself gaping with amazement. They were in a leafy dome that stretched from his room to the far end, letting streams of sunlight through the green net. Thin white beams snaked across the walls and ceiling. And in the very middle was a huge garden full of exotic plants. "You look like a fish," Dakari commented, descending the stairs with ease. Leo followed.

They passed a variety of elves on the way, all of whom spoke a foreign language that he could not decipher but Dakari could. Often times he found himself waiting for his companion to cease talking in the fluid language. Finally, they reached a large archway that led into a massive stable. Dakari passed several stalls before stopping at two of them. "Leonardo-san, you will be riding Tunali," he said, opening the door to the straw-filled stall. Inside was a light brown teela, striped with black on his forelegs and hind legs. His ears were tipped with ebony and his eyes were a friendly blue. "Walk up to him slowly and make sure he gets your scent. Otherwise, he won't let you ride him. That's how teelas are."

Dakari left and could be heard in the next stall over, conversing happily with Watishi, as Leo cautiously approached Tunali. The teela snorted and stepped forward to sniff Leo's hand. Once that deed was done, the animal butted him in the plastron. His back was up to Leo's mid torso. "Hey there," he said tentatively, petting the animated teela. He scratched Tunali behind the ears, which produced a happy groan. "So I guess we'll get to know each other pretty well, huh?" He gazed up at Leo with liquid blue eyes. The turtle felt like a moron, not knowing if the animal was comprehending him or not.

Dakari appeared in the doorway, Watishi's reins trailing behind him. "Are you coming, Leonardo-san?" he asked, Watishi coming up behind him and snorting indignantly when Tunali came into view. He shrank back, clearly not wanting to challenge her authority. "None of that, Watishi. Be nice," the samurai berated, frowning. "Follow me, Leonardo-san." He tugged the reins and led Watishi out of the stables. Leo sighed and looked at the reins doubtfully. How the heck was he supposed to ride this thing? Tunali seemed to sense his apprehensiveness and mooed encouragingly to goad him on. The turtle inhaled and started forward, Tunali following close behind and butting him whenever he stopped.

Then Leo's tail twitched. Tunali caught sight of the wriggling thing and backed peddled nervously, eyes widening. "It's not a snake, you know," Leo told him, grabbing hold of it. "It's a part of my body." He held it closer to the frightened animal's muzzle. Gradually, he gained confidence and went to sniff it. Finally satisfied that the foreign object wasn't going to bite, Tunali paraded forward, a chuckling Leo at his side. Once they exited the stable, Watishi grunted impatiently and stamped her paw on the ground.

Tunali shied away from the dominant female, hiding behind Leo. "Will you stop that?" Dakari scolded. The turtle patted the teela, who peeked out from his refuge anxiously. "Let's go." The samurai led Watishi toward a tunnel entrance, where he went in. Leo followed, not sure if he was going to stub a toe on some unseen rock outcropping on the floor, but it was smooth and polished. Glowing crystals lit the way to a large stone door. Dakari spoke a word in elvish and it opened with a loud, grating groan, revealing the lake where Leo had passed out. The door was behind a huge waterfall, which was parted because of the extrusive slab of stone.

Tunali plodded alongside the turtle as they inched along the shoreline. Dakari shut the door again with a word. The slamming sound reverberated off trees and water, triggering a flock of brightly colored birds to break from the trees, chirping. As Dakari mounted Watishi, Tunali and Leo satisfied their thirst at the shoreline of the clear lake, sucking up water like camels. Leo could feel the water sloshing around in his belly as he got up and sighed with contentment when the irritated, dry tissue at the back of his throat ceased burning.

"Come along, Leonardo-san. We have a ways to go yet," Dakari called from atop Watishi. The teela stamped her paw once more, eager to be off.

Leo stared doubtfully at Tunali before scrambling into the saddle and taking the reins in his hands. _Well, this is nice!_ he thought dully. _I haven't even ridden a horse before! How in the world…? _The teela under him seemed to sense his apprehensiveness and took a smooth step forward. The stride caught Leo completely by surprise and he nearly fell off into the pebbly sand, saving himself by grabbing wildly at the saddle. Tunali mooed an apology and bent around to nudge the turtle back up. Watishi uttered a loud cough and Dakari laughed. Leo realized that a cough from an animal with such personality equaled a guffaw. He lashed his tail in the air, frowning as it caused a whip-like noise that startled Tunali into bounding forward.

Leo yelped and fell forward to wrap his arms around the frightened herbivore's neck as he galloped into the trees. Dakari let out a whoop from behind and crashed through a nearby thicket to take the lead. Leo, however, was busy hanging on for dear life and not in the least looking forward to the sore butt he'd have in the morning. Tunali got control finally and leapt a large log, landing in a muddy patch of grass. He recovered his balance, veered to the left, and emerged into the ambush site, where two dead orcs still lay, neck and backs broken. Leo shuddered as the teela passed the two and vaulted over the stone monolith that Watishi had rammed over.

Within minutes, they sped out of the forest and onto the plains of Alorian, where golden grass swayed in the breeze. Dakari could be seen ahead, ears streaming back, and bouncing with Watishi's long strides. Tunali lengthened his own steps until the two were even, racing together through the grass. Leo's long tail was blowing around in the wind like a flag in a hurricane. "Where are we going?" he yelled to the samurai.

Dakari laughed as Watishi bucked over a ditch. "The gunghir mountain village of Lorra!" he shouted back, blinking as a bug met its doom on his forehead. With a disgusted growl, he flicked the thing's spattered insides off his gray fur, and bounced two feet up when his teela leapt and came back down to land hard on the dry soil. "I have somebody to meet there who might know a way to locate your brothers!" Leo carefully raised himself off the saddle, clutching the rim of it as though it were a lifeline. "And by the way, you look ridiculous."

The turtle glared at him as he grinned. "Give me a reason why I shouldn't push you off right now." In response, he innocently put a hand to his mail-clad chest and mouthed 'Me?'. Leo rolled his eyes as he veered away. Tunali's steady breathing grew harsh and he began to sweat profusely. It was almost late afternoon when they finally reached the end of the Alorian Plains. The teela slowed to a halt, sides heaving, as his rider slid down into the knee-deep grass, grimacing when his rear began to ache.

Dakari took one look at him and chuckled.

* * *

Alright, Chibi Rose Angel, you'd better not try to steal Tunali too! I swear, you're the worst! (eyes go red and steam shoots from ears)Ahem, now that that warning's over with (cools down and eyes return to normal hazel), next time I update might not be too long. And before everybody startsscreaming "You stole Arwen!" I very _loosely _based Hannalei on Arwen. Didn't steal her. And I also looselybased Aloria on Rivendell. That's where the glowing white wood comes in.I've got Don's thingie already planned out, and it's pretty good! As for Leo's, I'm not sure. Mike's, you already know what's going to happen. (gets out plastic battle axe)A battle. Big fat battle. See yah! 


	6. Surprise!

**Disclaimer:** Yes, I am one of those sad individuals who makes no money whatsoever (off TMNT or any other thing). Ergo, I don't own them.

A/N: Ahem. I can tell you now, this isn't going to be one of those perfect LoTR battles. It's rather rushed. I can simply not do battles! Which is ironic, considering most of the time they're fighting against tyranny! And, good news! I am now, officially, a high school freshman! (does a dance) Which is kinda odd, considering my quirks.

**6.**

Sor raced franticly down the hill as a black wall in the distance charged, roaring in grating voices. A lightning bolt from the thunderhead snaked down and cracked on the middle of the company, incinerating at least a score of orcs. The griffin in the front screamed and took flight, laboriously flapping its wings. Just as Sor arrived at the bottom of the incline, Knami gave the order for pike men get down in the trench. Almost fifteen elves hopped down, bearing long iron pikes, and ran toward the trench in the middle of the field. With quick movements, all of the pikes were set deep in the hard soil. The elves darted back to take their place amongst the archers.

Mikey and Kiara were stationed with the infantrymen, as was Aireilei, who looked like she was out for blood. A crack of thunder boomed overhead as Sor arrived by Mike. "Hey, Sor, ya just missed Knami's pep talk by about ten seconds," the turtle said with a wink, saluting the panting gunghir.

"And that's good," Kiara muttered, pulling out a sword to check its sharpness. "They're really stupid," she said, pointing with her blade at the orcs in the distance. "They only brought one griffin, and the commander's on it. Morons. If they'd brought more griffins, we'd be open to aerial attack."

"You want them to attack us?" Aireilei asked, turning her head to stare.

"I'm just criticizing." The dragon mumbled some elvish word and turned back around to watch Kiyo at work.

The water mage, Folla, was glowing with a blue aura. Rain came down in sheets upon the charging enemies, drenching them to the bone and wetting the dirt, turning it to mud. The grass was flattened. Narii the fire mage was currently standing by. Both were white male rukits with red eyes. Kiyo had his forearms up, controlling a steady gust of wind that kept the storm clouds at bay.

Sor whistled appreciatively. "Wow. That's pretty cool," he added, hearing a crack of thunder overhead. "For such a tiny – er, I mean small guy, he's got a lotta punch." Kiara nodded and shifted her weight uneasily.

Aireilei suddenly brought her gilded bow up, already nocked. "Here they come!" she bellowed, blowing white fire on the crystal arrowhead and loosing it. The artillery exploded on impact with the frontlines of orc infantry, scattering them into their comrades. Simultaneously, the elf archers released their deadly barrage. The orcs wilted like delicate flowers in a winter gale. Kiara growled as when they found the pikes, impaling many on them and coating them with slick blood. Corpses, their faces twisted into agonized grimaces, littered the pike lines, some trampled.

"CHARGE!" Knami thundered, holding his broad sword out. Hundreds of yelling rukits and elves smashed the orc army, the sound of clashing metal ringing out. Mikey whooped a loud "COWABUNGA!" and bounded toward the fierce melee, pulling out his 'chuks and taking down a slinking enemy that had slipped by the battling races. Kiara bolted for an orc, whipped out her other sword, and took him out with a swift double stroke, neatly removing his head. Sor reached behind his back and drew his massive sword, planting himself next to Aireilei. Gunghir were only useful for rearguards because of their wings; they were large targets.

Iwansi could be seen diving from above, going invisible, and spraying the left flank with yellow dragon fire. Her sensitive ears picked up a crackle and she banked hard to the right to avoid a bolt of lightning that smashed the orcs below with its fury. "YEEHAW!" the little dragon cheered, spitting more fire. Bima darted in from the right flank, doing her best to delay their march by flaming at their toes. She grinned with satisfaction as pained howls of rage rang out from the seared orcs as they clutched their tootsies.

Mikey went at it like a demon, smacking left and right with both or one 'chuk. "Outta the way, you big uglies!" He ducked a sword and sent the owner flying and into a bare pike with a powerful kick. The turtle jumped over a circle of the fiends to land in the middle next to Kiara, who was holding her own quite well against them. "How's it goin', girl?" he yelled, whapping one that dared come too close in the head.

"Just…FINE!" she grunted back, slashing furiously, hacking through a helmet and cleaving the head inside in two. "But I could do without…the BLOOD!" Kiara sliced cleanly through another orc, whirling to hew down a sneaker that had almost caught Mike off guard. They both perked up their ears as Aireilei shot by overhead, spewing flames everywhere. Some stuck the orcs around them, lighting their tunics on fire. Kiara took this time to end some of the distracted orcs' lives.

Mikey halted his assault, panting like crazy. "Can't avoid that stuff, Ki!" he chuckled. "Uh-oh, duck!" He pushed her down to avoid a set of sweeping onyx talons that barely missed her head. "Duck again!" he cried when she started to stand. Aireilei zoomed by again, roaring her fury, as rivulets of rain ran down her scaly armor. She twisted in the air, belched ivory fire at the griffin she was pursuing, missed, and shot after them.

As soon as Kiara got to her feet, she saw a group of orcs heading for the mages on the hill. "Hurry, Mike, we've got to help Sor protect them!" she shouted urgently, leaping up to land on an orcs head. She used it as a springboard to vault from one head to another until she landed on the outside rim of the battle. Barking out a war cry, the black rukit charged furiously, slashing down the front orc. Narii sent a few fireballs to help drive them off, but it really only succeeded in making very nasty barbecue meat that stank like rotten eggs. "Ew, Narii, I hope you're eating that stuff." He wrinkled his snout and burned grass to make ashes, giving the storm fuel.

Sor looked like he was struggling with a mob at his end. Kiara could already see Mikey dashing toward them, and knocking them away like bowling pins. They flew everywhere. A bolt of lightning snaked down from the raining thunderhead, and snapped only yards away from the griffin, who was still being chased by Aireilei. Then a blue dot and a yellow dot flew up by Aireilei and appeared to be consulting with her. Apparently some agreement was reached, because Iwansi and Bima shot ahead to cut off the griffin's escape route.

"Look out!" Kiyo warned, sending a gust over her head. It hit the slinking orc with staggering force, dazing him. Kiara jabbed her sword into his stomach and he fell with a low moan of agony.

"Funny, I had no idea they could feel pain," she muttered, yanking her sword out of the fallen enemy. "Can dish it out but can't take it."

"Kiara!" Kiyo bellowed over the wind. "Knami is in need of assistance! Can you see him?" She spotted his almost snow-white pelt in the melee, surrounded by enemies and nowhere near an elf.

"Yes!" The rukit sped down the incline at demon speed, smashing the filth with her powerful strokes. Kiara's swords seemed to take on an eager, bloodthirsty color as she hacked and twirled her way through the band of orcs. When she finally caught sight of Knami, the rukit looked like he could barely defend himself and was on the verge of collapsing. He was covered in blood, though she doubted it was all his, and several cuts riddled his arms and legs. Kiara vaulted inside the ring just in time to block a fatal blow with the flat of her sword. "What's the matter, grandpa? Getting arthritis?" she growled, dealing a double slash that parted an orc head from an orc torso from orc legs. The decapitated body fell to the bloody grass as Knami chuckled wearily.

"Grandpa? No, girl, I ain't a grandpa!" He swung his broadsword around to connect with screaming flesh. "I'm feelin' just great!" Another orc met its doom at the hands of Knami. Kiara parried a strike, kicking the owner hard in the stomach, and beheading him once he had doubled over with pain. The general growled a curse and smacked an enemy with the flat of his broad sword, knocking the filthy imp nearly ten feet. "But this is getting rather repetitive! Block, slash, duck, block, slash, duck!" he chanted sourly, following the rhythm perfectly. Another orc fell victim to his sword's thirsty bite.

Kiara lunged at a particularly large orc chieftain who had parted the mass of his followers, slashing hard at him with both rapiers. She missed and sprawled past as he brought up his scimitar to end her life. The rukit rolled aside, narrowly evading his jagged black blade with inches to spare as it chopped the flattened grass. Snarling and snorting rainwater, she flipped up, dodged his comrade's spear thrust, and kicked backwards. The spear's shaft broke upon impact with her foot paw. As he stared, perplexed, at his shattered spear, Kiara rolled away from another slash by the giant chieftain. The spear bearer got maimed, taking her intended spot. The chieftain yanked his scimitar out, face contorted in a dirty sneer, showing off his lovely, yellow, decaying teeth (A/N: Sarcasm here guys.). "Who's your dentist?" Kiara jeered, blocking an angry strike and throwing it back. "He must not get paid much, because you look positively terrible!"

That did it. Roaring, his face the very picture of rage, the chieftain feinted a slash downward, punching Kiara with his giant fist when she dodged the "attack". She rocketed back into the filthy gathering, her swords removed by the chieftain's followers as he stepped forward. Sneering triumphantly, he raised his wicked weapon as Kiara struggled wildly in their grasp. He cackled, hacking down. The rukit closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. But what came instead was a loud roar of fury.

Bima was clawing his pig-like eyes, exercising no restraint in her pure anger. "You beast!" she screamed as he howled and slapped at his face, dropping his sword in panic. "You wretched pile of teela feces!" Coupled with insult and pain, she even managed to get in a few searing flames that licked his face before being swatted off. She lay in the dirt, growling. "You dare…" Kiara saw it coming long before the fuming dragon had even released the sentence. Bima got up amongst a throng of orcs, throwing them back as if they were feathers. "I should have known (A/N: Censored. :) like you wouldn't even exercise honor!" She seemed to glow with an aura in her absolute wrath.

An agonized shriek came from the chieftain's throat as magma temperature blue flames smote him in the face. Bima showed no mercy as she continued to incinerate him where he stood. Kiara took the distraction as an opportunity. She wrenched powerfully out of her captors' arms, picked up her swords, twirled on her toes, and slashed, bringing down at least four orcs. The orc chieftain was finished, that was sure. All that was left of him were ashes now. Bima snarled as the other followers backed off slowly, but one of them squealed the phrase 'Strength in numbers' and the two found themselves surrounded again.

The rain poured in torrents now, smothering the smoke coming from the chieftain's smoldering remains and plastering Kiara's fur down even more. She and Bima stood back to hock as the orcs jeered. "Thanks for saving my butt," Kiara whispered, taking a defensive stance.

Bima puffed smoke, and flattened her ears. "You're welcome, but we're not out of the woods yet, pardner!" Lightning snapped down as Knami leapt into the fray.

"I thought I'd lost you, girl!" he panted, wearily raising his sword.

Kiara slashed at a cocky orc who'd charged too early. "I just missed my target, that's all."

* * *

The Roc stopped its descent toward Don's face about two inches away, and turned to be tackled by a roaring Raphael. The red-clad turtle pinned the bird against the tree, only to be thrown back next to Don. He, however, wasn't stunned and got back up, snarling his fury. But then, something odd happened. Something very strange and peculiar. The bird rattled off an indignant sentence, though you could call it more of a hot complaint. "Will you guys knock it off?" he squawked at the panting Raph and paralyzed Don. "Coulda sworn Saesha over here told me you weren't the type to fight without reason!" 

Obviously not comprehending the fact that speech had come out of the Roc's beak, Raph growled angrily, "You attacked first!" and threw a gleaming Sai at the bird. In a split second, he disappeared, and the turtle's trajectory missed, burying the tip into a tree.

Rijinn squeaked, "What the…where'd he go?"

"Still here, dolt." A small, cat-like creature sat on the loamy soil, snout twisted into a cynical, Cheshire grin. "Now, to correct your mistake, _I _did not attack first," he meowed, licking a paw daintily as Raph and Rijinn gaped in disbelief, letting their long red ears lie flat simultaneously. "I merely came to ask your oh-so friendly, toe-whacking brother here a question or two." Don turned pink at the very mention of his sudden aggressive action.

Kyrunir knelt beside the cat curiously. "How'd you go covey? I thought you were a Roc before!" he asked hesitantly as the gray tabby covey slunk to his knee.

He yawned, revealing rows of small white teeth. "Oh, I might as well tell you lot. Don't look like Pasty material anyway," he muttered, flicking his long tassel-ended tail. Saesha hopped off the rukit's shoulder to land next to the questionable creature on the ground. "Ah, Saesha, lass! How're ya doin'? Been a while, hasn't it?"

The dragon puffed some black smoke. "I'm afraid I haven't a clue who you are," she said, narrowing her eyes.

"Really?" He frowned and put up a paw to scratch his chin. "Well now, that's a bit of a dilemma! I'll just have to jog your memory then." He shrank in a blink of an eye, this time a sparrow.

"You're kidding," Saesha grumbled, turning slightly pale and snorting.

"Do my eyes deceive me or are you less than happy to see me?" he asked, preening his feathers. "I shall answer this lad's question first, as you seem to be too preoccupied with staring at the ground." Raph and Don both took a step closer. "First of all, I am a shape-shifting mage, and can therefore assume the form of any mammal I want." Raph looked ready to snort, but swallowed his words when the sparrow gained height, grew a shell and plastron, and lost the feathers. "And you sir," the cloned mutant turtle growled, poking Raph in the chest, "had better watch your tongue."

"But what are you doing here?" Saesha asked, craning her neck because he had grown considerably since being a sparrow.

"I suppose that should be explained too. But first, I shall change. Your form is too hard to get used to, Raphael." He changed into a covey again. "Ah, much better! Now, lass, I can also do a tad of portal magic, but not the kind where you travel from town to town. No, that's tiring indeed."

"Am I right in assuming that you are Lharom?"

The covey grinned and flicked his tail. "Ding ding ding, give the little dragon a prize!"

Saesha wrinkled her muzzle. "Then why are you talking differently?"

Lharom sneezed and shook his head, flopping long, fluff-tipped ears. "I bet you'd believe me if I told you my head is wanted in this realm and others because I've helped worlds get rid of usurpers and the like. Tyrants, you name it. There's a reward for me, so I disguise my regular tone with some obscure accent."

Raph cleared his throat. "Guys, I've got somethin' kinda urgent."

"And what would that be?"

"Ukeera got caught by orcs," Rijinn finished flatly, flicking his tail sullenly.

Kyrunir jumped up, nearly screaming his worry. "Why, how…"

The turtle shut his muzzle with a hand. "'Kay, know how she went ahead of me? I found her tracks and wagon ruts near a big ol' willow tree, white'n ugly."

His tail drooped as Raph let go. "The Old Bone." He rattled off a list of curses, growling his wrath.

Lharom licked a paw. "Well, she's not getting rescued with us just sitting here all morning. Shall we go then?" he inquired, eyes flashing. Raph and Kyrunir looked ready to cut off a head. "Alright then, hold on a minute while I think of something." He appeared to be pondering. "Hmm, let's see…no, teelas are too unprotected…covey's too small…Ah! I've got it!" Seconds later, a massive wolf-like creature stood before them. "Mmm, yes, love those wolfena!" he growled through bared, sharp teeth as he stretched and yawned. Lharom's back was up to Don's mid-torso. Huge onyx claws in the wide forepaws flexed, grasping and piercing the dirt. "Everybody on the carnivorous express!"

Self-consciously, it was Kyrunir who scrambled on first, with the aid of two brawny turtles. He scooted up until he was right on the base of Lharom's furry neck. The wolfena sneezed, jolting him. "Eh, sorry about that. Got a bug in my nose." The rukit gulped nervously. Don vaulted on behind him with ease, until Lharom bucked him off. "Hey, getcher stick off your back, Toe-Smackin' whelp! Stupid thing stabbed me!" he grunted, watching the turtle get up. Don snorted, removed his staff, and tried again. This time, he wasn't rejected, which relieved his tension considerably.

Raph eyed Lharom's furry form and ground out, "I think I'd rather run."

The wolfena grinned maliciously. "Suit yerself!" And he was off like a shot, disappearing through the trees. The turtle grumbled something as Saesha landed on his other shoulder.

Rijinn tapped his skull. "Y'know, that probably wasn't the smartest thing to do, Raph."

"Yes, now I'll have to fly you over there telekinetically!" Saesha groaned, slumping wearily. "Just the thought of your weight weakens me!" Raph glared sullenly and trotted off, following Lharom's huge footprints.

When the trio arrived at the Old Bone, Lharom was sniffing the muddle of tracks furiously, looking as though his nose would fall off if he didn't keep inhaling. Don and Kyrunir were standing by the withered tree now, watching the wolfena at work. "Oh, drat them orcs! Why'd they have to make such a mess of things?"

Saesha looked bored. "Well, we can safely assume that since they haven't a clue where the Secret Caverns are, they didn't' go that way." He pointed down a muddy path. "And, there's oljis thorns down there."

"Your point, oh wise scholar?" Lharom growled, snout in the dirt.

"That they went left instead of right," Don said. Lharom had an obvious 'aha!' moment as he straightened and put his bushy tail in the air.

"Ah, right! Thank you, Toe-Smacker!" Don began turning pink again.

"Why can't you just call me by my real name?"

"Because, I want you to feel mighty miserable about your unwarranted actions against my neutral phalanges!" Lharom snorted. "Now, climb on. Raphael, I suggest you come along. It took you a near decade to arrive here."

Now it was his turn to snort. "Did not," Raph retorted, acidly glaring at him.

He growled. "Must I carry you in my mouth?" The disgusted look on Raph's green face told him otherwise. "Then get on!" Grumbling a defeated phrase of choice words, he climbed onto Lharom's broad back behind Don. "Hold on tight guys!" He leapt forward with a short yip, landing and bounding down the strange trail. The soil slowly turned into dark sand littered with weeds and the like. Lharom's long strides made the ride fairly smooth but Raph still found himself bored.

"I spy with my red eye…something green," Rijinn said.

"Bushes," Raph mumbled, rolling his eyes.

"Okay, okay. See if you can get this one…I spy with my red eye…something ugly."

The turtle chuckled. "Easy, that's Donnie!"

"Hey!" Don grouched indignantly.

"Nope." Rijinn smiled smugly. "Not even close."

"Oh, hey, I've got it!" Raph said. "Saesha, right?" He got a face full of black smoke and ash. "Whazzat for?"

Saesha peered down her muzzle at him. "For insulting me," she growled, nipping his ear and jumping to Don's shoulder.

"Ow, that hurts!" He rubbed his bitten ear and tried his best to clear the smoke off his face, but to no avail.

"Might I say that you look like a raccoon?" Rijinn chuckled.

"Not funny!"

Lharom skidded to a halt, throwing the unsuspecting Raph forward into Don's shell. This brought about the domino effect, which soon had all five riders in a tangled heap of limbs on the ground. "Shhh!" the wolfena hissed. "Be quiet, there they are!" Saesha was the first to get out, skittering up a tree trunk.

_I see them, _she communicated telepathically with Don. _Ukeera's tied to a post in the middle of their camp. It looks like they'll be interrogating her soon, so we'll have to make this quick._

"Well?" Raph whispered.

"Ukeera's in immediate danger," Don replied softly, parting the fronds of a fern to see if he could spot her. "We have to get her out of there. Lharom, what's an animal that will make them scatter? Something big, scary, maybe even a spazmosaur." Raph groaned at the very mention of that tentacled monster.

"Aw, anything but that, Donnie."

Lharom crouched down in the sand, clearly thinking very hard. "Big…the only thing I can think of that's big would be…"

"How about a dragon?" Rijinn suggested.

"No way!" he hissed. "Last time I tried that, I looked like a crossbred wyvern! You simply can't take the shape of legendary creatures! Now, let me think." He brightened and grinned wickedly. "Ah, yes, that should do it!" He transformed into a sparrow and flitting high above the orc camp until there was only a black dot to show where he was. Then, that black dot grew enormous in a split second. They watched with gaping mouths as Lharom plummeted to the earth. He looked like a Roc, but for the lion-like body on him.

"Griffin." The giant tawny lion-bird crashed down onto the ground, shaking the earth with the heavy landing. The orcs shrieked and skittered away as Lharom squawked and pawed the indent in the sand. They began to cautiously approach him again, spears out and arrows drawn.

"He's gonna need help." Raph pulled out his Sais in a fleeting moment and dashed out into the clearing, barreling through orcs and sending them flying, much to Rijinn's distress. The turtle positioned himself next to Lharom's left shoulder, taking a defensive stance as they jeered and teased in their shrill, grating voices. "I know some people who need singing lessons!" he yelled tauntingly. Arrows flew at him and he prepared to block them.

They stopped two inches from his face, glowing purple. "Are you mad?" Saesha growled, flying out from the trees and spitting amethyst fire at the orcs. Several went down, howling for their poor tootsies' sake. "They could've skewered you!" Don bounded out of the woods, smacking enemies left and right with his staff.

"No. But they seriously need a voice lesson. That, and maybe some orthodontia work." Spears rocketed at them, flung away by Lharom's long tail. Grinning wickedly, Raph darted at them, whirled, and smacked three in the gut with his tail, fending off the others' swords with his Sais. Don jumped in and blocked a blow with his Bo, one that could've cut Raph's tail off.

"Watch your back!" he growled, throwing the blow back at its owner.

"Isn't that what you're for, Donnie?" Raph asked innocently, grinning widely when he got thrown an exasperated glare.

Don thwacked an orc on the shoulder, kicking him in the gut. "I remember when you told _me _to watch _my _back! I suppose this is just an awkward moment?" Another filthy rat went down.

Lharom screeched loudly and bounded toward Ukeera. "I'm comin', girly!" He skidded to a halt before her pole and, using his long talons, cut the ropes. She fainted at the very sight of him.

"Man, I've experienced that for being a freak," Raph grunted, blocking a strike, "but you must be plain ugly if she fainted from one look!"

The tawny griffin picked up the unconscious rukit by the scruff of her neck, depositing her on his back and clawing out when a shrieking orc charged at him. The unfortunate little beast broke his neck when he hit a tree. "You hush, Raphael," he chittered, bounding toward the skirmish and swatting aside several opponents, all of which either A. broke their necks or B. broke their backs. That took out a majority of the enemies. The rest hesitantly stepped backward, threatened by mainly Raph's Sais and Lharom's huge paws. Finally, they threw down their arms and bolted screeching into the woods. "Well. That worked out nicely."

Kyrunir crept out of the bushes, a look of awe on his face. "That was incredible! How'd you learn to fight like that?" he asked Don and Raph. Don modestly blushed while Raph just stood there, spinning a Sai.

"We learned from our dad," Raph muttered, spinning the Sai more intensely.

Then the young rukit spotted Ukeera on Lharom's back. "Oh no! Ukeera! Is she alright?" Kyrunir ran up to the griffin and stood on his tiptoes to try and get a better look.

"She'll be fine, except for an undying fear of Lharom's ugly mug." Raph got a whiplash with the griffin's lion tail for that. "Hey, just tellin' it like it is!"

"They must not have had her for very long. She's only got a couple of cuts." Kyrunir carefully inspected her body, taking care not to steer toward the abdomen end. He'd learned his lesson the last time he ran into her.

"Don't complain. That's just going to make it easier to get to wherever… we're going," Don said, scratching his chin. "By the way, where exactly are we going?"

Lharom stretched and yawned, spreading his toes. "I don't know where _you're _going, but I'm on my way to an old friend's house. He lives near the coast around here."

"What's his name?"

"He might be gone. He's always on the move. Always finding other adventures. I think he left a while ago, but I promised I'd look after his house for him. Just gotta go check it."

"Again I pose the question: What's his name?" Don inquired again.

"Dakari. He's wanted by the Empire for various 'crimes' and rescues of villages that were fighting his control." Lharom snapped at a bug. "But, am I the only one who's hungry?" Raph raised his hand enthusiastically, as did Kyrunir and Don. Saesha simply rolled her eyes and hopped off the purple-clad turtle's shoulder.

"I'll find some rabbits then," she said, darting off into the forest.

Kyrunir blinked. "Wow, she's fast."

"There's telekinetic energy adding to that speed," Don supplied, switching to genius mode. "Her velocity would be sufficiently lowered if not for the psychic power jet stream coming off her. So that's why…"

"Ya just learn to tune out when he gets like this," Raph whispered to the frazzled Kyrunir, who nodded as Don continued to blabber in geek talk.

* * *

Leo crouched silently in the moonlit brush, cringing at a cracking twig. That should be Dakari, but why on earth was he making so much noise? Another rustle in the dry grass. He turned slowly around so as not to disturb the vegetation he was currently sitting in. Two watery brown eyes stared back. The turtle froze as a mournful wail broke out from the place where the irises were. _What the..._He grabbed the creature and, as he pulled her back to him, found leathery wings obscuring most of her arms. _Hm, wonder what you are? _The little winged thing sniffled and buried her face in the crook of his elbow. As far as he could tell, the only thing clothing her was a primitive loin cloth type thing. She hiccuped and clutched at him with two fingers on each wing. 

When Dakari had asked him to hide the teelas and wait here, he hadn't questioned. The samurai knew lots more than he did about villages under siege. So Leo had waited. For over half an hour now, it seemed, and Dakari showed no signs of returning from the encroached Lorra. The turtle blushed when the auburn-haired baby found his index finger and began sucking on it. Right now he was a little more concerned with the fact that he had a hungry baby in his arms and didn't know what to do. _How do you care for a baby? _he mused, scratching his chin with his newly freed, slobbery finger. _Beats me. _

Leo sighed. _Alright, that's it! I should've known a samurai couldn't be quiet to save his neck! _He stood, the baby girl still in his left arm, and traveled silently back to where he'd hidden the teelas they grunted excitedly when he arrived, but he hushed them. Tunali looked questioningly at him. _Nuts, Dakari's not here…_ That meant he'd have to go in after him. But the baby. What to do with her? Leo rotated his ears, catching wolf-like howls on the air. No way he'd be leaving her here. Watishi and Tunali could defend themselves well enough, but with a burden, they were going to be in trouble.

Humming the theme from 'Mission Impossible', the turtle glided silently through the grass, back the way he'd come. If he encountered enemies, he'd have to find a way to keep the baby safe and fight at the same time. "I can't keep calling you baby," Leo muttered, looking at the bright-eyed girl. "You're pretty much a toddler, so how about…Todd?" Todd didn't make a sound, but kept staring in fascination at his rotating green ears. "Alright, Todd it is." _Idiotic name, I'm sure, but it'll do. _He crept over the rise that he had been hiding behind, and found himself feeling a weird sense of déjà vu.

Gathered in the rocky valley below were monstrous trees, towering above each other. Lights flickered from the trunks and the canopies of the trees, making the leaves look like little fireflies. Leo's farseeing eyes caught glimpses of bridges going from tree to tree. Platforms were doorways to the hollowed-out trunks. "Looks kind of like Manhattan's skyline," he muttered, cradling Todd when she started to sniffle again. "Doesn't look like anyone's out though…" At the bases of the trees were mobs of filthy creatures armed with torches. A cage sat next to a particularly large group of them. Leo didn't want to guess who was inside.

"Agoo?"

"Shh, Todd, you'll have to be quiet!" The baby giggled. Leo resumed looking for a way to get to the strange colony of trees. _That must be Lorra. Looks like Dakari was right; it's under siege. _The turtle spotted a scrawny tree to the far side of the forest. It was bent over, touching one of its taller neighbors with its branches. That could work. But there's no way he'd be able to climb a tree that size with a baby in his arms. His tail twitched irritably and he racked his brain for ideas. _My tail! _If he could get a safe grip on Todd, he could climb while she was in his tail. But it'd be easier if Todd were asleep. "That's right, you're hungry aren't you?" Milk would probably be best. And he knew where to get it.

He scampered back down the incline, veering toward the place where he'd put the teelas. Watishi gave a surprised moo when she saw him. Tunali raised his head from the ground on which he lay and looked askance at him. Leo quietly deposited Todd between his teela's legs before approaching Watishi. She snuffled his hand and calmed down. The turtle rummaged around in her saddle bags until he found an empty bottle. Ignoring her complaints, the turtle knelt to look for nipples. There they were. He nervously reassured her before attempting to grab one. She jumped away when his hand made contact. _Cold hands. No duh._

A few minutes later, he had milk, but several large, purple, blotchy bruises to show for his work. Todd was whimpering now, reaching for Leo as he knelt beside her. He uncorked the bottle and tipped it to her lips so she could taste it. The few drips that made it to her mouth were sucked up rapidly. Leo angled the bottle down more as Todd snorted with pleasure. The milk flow waned until she had drank all of it. He deposited the bottle in his belt and picked her up when she started crying. _Uh-oh, gaseous substances coming up! _Franticly, he patted her back until a loud belch emerged. The baby made a satisfied noise and fell silent. _Well, if I ever have a kid, now I know how to feed it! _

He made his way back up the hill for the third time, going over and creeping down. About halfway down the hill, he turned right, traveling along the rim of hills that fenced Lorra in. The scrawny tree grew bigger as he got closer. Todd made awed noises and fearfully buried her face in Leo's chest when they got to the base of stunted thing. Up close, it was larger than it seemed at a distance. The turtle inhaled slowly to calm his nerves and withdrew his shuko spikes with his free hand. With his other, he held Todd out. His tail wrapped firmly around her waist, carefully avoiding her wing flaps. She giggled again and waved her arms around, creating tiny breezes.

Leo fought the urge to chuckle at her antics as he put the spikes on. _Going up!_ He climbed up the scrawny tree with the agility and grace of a spider monkey, tail close to his back. Todd seemed to be mesmerized as they gained height, not even making a sound. He was at the top-most branch now, which was wiggling dangerously. He leapt off as it cracked, smashing his shuko spikes into the giant neighbor tree's bark. His newly healed ribs sent a warning as he painfully pulled himself up the tree. One arm after another. The stunted tree shrank significantly with every inch he gained. When he was hundreds of feet up high like this, it was impossible not to look around. Mountains stretched as far as the eye could see, covered in lush green vegetation. A shimmering ribbon of blue sparkled under the moon, also known as a river. It wound down through the valley and into the forest.

Leo finally arrived under the platform at the top of the tree. It would be hard to get on top of it though, because the planks stretched out over his head. He'd have to grab it with one hand of spikes while holding onto the tree and scramble over the edge on top. _The moment of truth. _Sticking out his tongue, the turtle shuffled up a bit higher before reaching for a plank. The spikes sunk in, taking grip. Just to be safe, he tightened his grip on Todd. _What am I saying? We did this all the time when infiltrating Foot! _Yeah. Except his legs didn't hang down like now. Lightning fast, he grabbed with his other hand, used momentum to carry him forward, and flipped up onto the wooden platform, panting for all he was worth.

Todd patted his leg as he sat down. "Agoo la phu ga," she reassured in her own language. Leo smiled, perking his ears forward. _I wonder if she's got parents? _The treetop he was on was eerily quiet. As Todd felt along his plastron making curious noises, he wondered if all the villagers were trapped in that giant cage below. He hoped not. The leaves overhead rustled in the breeze. Better get moving.

Leo stood, pulling Todd up from the planks with his tail. He decided she'd be safer that way. Creeping silently around the corner of the tree, he came across a hollowed out cave in the trunk. A candle burned inside, making the wood seem honey-colored and warm. The wax was almost spent, some of the wick in ashes on the box it was on. Leo ducked inside but no inhabitants were to be found. Before leaving the cubicle, he blew out the candle. _Wouldn't want the tree burning down._

The turtle started across a bridge adjoining his tree to another. The results were the same; no inhabitants. This was beginning to get creepy. Leo went to approximately six trees, finding no one. _Where is everybody? _He grunted with frustration, leaning against one of the ghost trees.

"Halt!" somebody hissed commandingly. "Put your appendages where I can see them!" Leo turned around slowly and came face to face with an arrow. The thing behind the arrow was exactly identical to Todd, body wise. She wore black tunic over her (A/N: Needless to say well formed. Heheh…) chest. A leather pouch rested at her side, a quiver of arrows peeking over her left shoulder. Her legs were clad in leather shorts that reached to her knees. Odd boots covered her feet. "Who are you?" Confusion entered her voice, though the arrow did not move.

"One who would help," Leo replied quietly.

Her brown face hardened again. "I've never seen your race before. How do I know you aren't with the filth that hold our village captive?" she growled.

"I was brought here on accident. If I knew where Dakari was, he'd vouch for me, but I still haven't found him…"

Surprise again. "You're with the samurai?" Leo nodded. Her gray eyes looked him over carefully. "I know he travels with strange people, but you're a different story. Tell me, how did you get dragon limbs?"

Leo twiddled his thumbs. "I did a mind meld with one once." Her face showed she was about to accuse him of forcing that meld. "He was my friend," he supplied hurriedly. "But I've no idea where he is now. What I do know is that Aireilei did something wacky when she transported us here, because I got separated from my brothers…"

The one word that did her in was Aireilei. The bow lowered as her eyes widened with astonishment. "You've met Aieilei?" she asked doubtfully.

"She's a friend of mine, yes."

"I am sorry. I didn't mean anything." She put her arrow away and rested her arm in a relaxed position by her side. "Forgive me for my rash actions."

Leo bowed in return. "It's alright. I've gotten my fair share of accusations already. I am Leonardo."

"Anorr," she said in return.

"Anorr, do you know who this little one belongs to? I happened to find her on my way here." The turtle held out Todd with his tail.

Anorr shook her head. "I don't. I did hear that one of our people tried to escape but got shot down. This must be her baby." Todd giggled and held out her hands. "I thank you for keeping her safe. But there is one question that continues to vex me. You clearly don't possess wings or the power of flight. How did you get up here?"

Leo held up his shuko spiked hands with a smile. "I climbed."

"Ah. That explains it. And another thing. I barely heard you when you were walking. How is it that you remain so silent?"

"I was trained to become one with the shadows," he said, noticing the perplexed look on her face grow.

Anorr didn't get it. "Magic?" she suggested.

"No, it's a form of self-defense called ninjitsu." She nodded. "My turn to ask questions. Where is everybody?"

She wrinkled her nose in disgust. "You mean the ones who tried to get out of here? Shot down, tortured, killed, held captive. One of the four. I saw a skirmish take place a while ago, and somebody was being carried to the cage." Leo got a cold feeling in his gut. _Dakari captive? _"They're here because the rebel army recruits regularly at this location. Apparently Xetyphaes didn't like it and sent troops to put us under siege."

"Well, what about you? Why are you still here?"

"I'm trying to convince the council to fight them, but they're not doing anything about it."

Leo smiled as Todd hiccuped. "I know a way we can free those people, council or no. Where's your weapons supply, Anorr?" he asked.

For the next half hour, they lowered swords and spears down to ground level by pulleys and baskets. Leo was stationed on the ground to remove them without clattering the steel too much. They had a sizeable pile of it by now, and Anorr was just finishing the last basket-full. Once that was lowered, she glided down on her wings to the ground, landing stealthily.

"Okay, remember, Leo," Anorr whispered. "We want to free Tor first. He was in the war when Xetyphaes took over, so he knows a lot more about combat than you or I."

Leo grinned. "Try me. I've been trained for most of my life on fighting. I'll be fine." Todd clutched Leo's shell rim as he slipped away through the trees toward the cage. The waning crescent moon shed some light on things, so it was easier to see where he was stepping, but his eyes did most of the work. _Ah, how I love dragon eyes! _He slid through two trees, sighting a fire in the distance. The orcs' campsite.

He got out a katana silently, gliding over leaves and twigs like a ghost. The cage was getting closer. Inside he saw many winged people like Anorr and Todd, but the one to catch his eye was the little gray rabbit in the corner. Dakari looked like he was seething inwardly. Leo never saw him mad, so this was a bit of a surprise. The samurai seemed to be conversing with a winged person who chuckled every once and a while. The turtle finally arrived at the edge of the cage and made some hissing noises.

Dakari's ears flopped forward as he caught the glowing green eyes between the wooden bars. "Leonardo-san?" he whispered. "What are you doing here?" Leo made the 'shhh' motion and gestured for him to come closer.

"Where are your katanas, Dakari?" he asked softly.

"Those orcs have them, along with every other weapon the gunghir brought to fight with." _Oh. That's what they're called. _

"Be back in a sec!" Todd waved as he sank back into the darkness. Leo loved the feeling of the darkness enveloping him. He crept up to the fire, careful not to disturb the sleeping orcs. He rummaged through the pile of weapons until he found Dakari's katanas. The turtle, pleased with his success, jumped back into cover of the forest and sped back to the cage, where Dakari and his gunghir friend waited. Anorr was also there with weapons.

"Thank you, Leonardo-san!" Dakari took his swords lovingly and strapped them to his side. "Now, to get out of this wretched place."

The gunghir at his side put on a pouting face. "What, no sword for me?"

"Act your age, Tor," Anorr grumbled, handing him the requested item. Tor grinned and, taking the sword, slashed clean through the bars. Todd clapped and giggled some more as he hopped out of the cage.

"What fun is that, dear?" he asked sweetly as the other gunghir began waking up. One by one they scrambled out, got their weapons, and readied for a charge. "Can't I have any fun?"

"You're five hundred years old, Tor."

"So what?"

Dakari quietly called order. "Hush, people, hush! Be silent!" That did the trick. Everybody shut up. "Now, if we're to make this work, you must be silent. The orcs don't have many men over here, but their friends are by different trees. We'll have to hunt them down and destroy them. Leonardo will be leading a party of you."

Leo started with astonishment. "What?" The gunghir stared at him. "Oh, come on, Dakari! I—"

"You'll do fine. All who are willing to accompany him, step forward." Anorr and five others joined the stunned turtle. "All those who will be with Tor, go and join him." Seven made a group around the ancient gunghir. "I will lead the other party. But first, Leonardo, don't you have a question to ask?"

"Wha – oh, right." He held up Todd. "Does this little girl belong to anybody?" There was a joyful cry, severely stifled because it would've given them away, and a teary female gunghir ran forward.

"Oh thank you, thank you!" she wept, taking Todd from his tail and clutching her to her chest. "Thank you for rescuing my darling little Erori!" Erori, formerly Todd, hugged her mother and patted her reassuringly. "How can I ever repay you?"

The emotional lady struck Leo speechless. "I, um…I really don't want anything in return…" The mother hugged him fiercely, squeezing his breath out of him. "You're welcome," he wheezed finally.

Dakari chuckled as she let go. "Fyla, I think you should take young Erori back up to the treetops with you. You will get hurt if you stay down here."

Fyla's green eyes burned. "I will not return! I've a score to settle with those filthy rats!" she growled darkly, clutching Erori as she backed away from Leo, who was still fighting to catch his breath.

Anorr stepped up. "Fyla, please. For Erori's sake." Fyla gritted her teeth and let out an animalistic snarl.

"I can keep Erori safe," Leo said, rubbing his plastron.

Anorr sighed heavily. "Alright, but if Fyla says you may, you must guard her with your life." The mother gunghir nodded and gave the little baby back to Leo, who promptly wrapped her in his tail. "Now, Fyla, here is a bow for you. I shan't trust you with a sword, because you flail around like a dying fish." She took the bow handed to her and took her place among Leo's rag tag bunch.

Dakari cleared his throat. "Now, if we're all situated, I will assign you your trees. Leonardo, you and your party with attack the right end of the forest. Tor, you will take care of the filth that dwell right around this area." Tor made a mock salute and grinned like a naughty child. "I will attack the middle. Now, are we all clear?" A multitude of nods answered him. "Very good. Be off!" Leo melted into the darkness, his friends following behind.

* * *

Well, I'd say this was a pretty long chapter, wouldn't you? (grins) Rather proud of myself. And the plot thickens. Thanks to my reviewers for making me feel wonderful! Next chapter should be in the works soon. Until next time, bye! 

LN


	7. Battles Are Won, Discoveries Made

**Disclaimer: **Golly, what's wrong with you people? I don't own the TMNT! Sheesh, get off my case, nitwits!

A/N: For reasons you'll soon find out, I have Chibi Rose Angel's shout out at the end of this chapter. (sigh) I had buttloads of trouble starting this chapter, for reasons I can't understand. For some reason, ending on odd notes like last chapter just gives me agony starting the next. (growls) Sorry, this was a very late update. I have another plot bunny running around in my head and its jamming my muses on DM. Darn you, plot bunny! (shakes her fist) BTW, I also made a world map of Haradris that I'm currently putting locations and continent names onto. I'll notify you guys when it's ready. And this chapter's long. Get yourself popcorn and a drink.

**7.**

Saesha arrived back at the skirmish area with four plump young rabbits surrounded in purple aura all floating in the air behind her. It looked as though their hearts had been stopped, because there was bloody froth coming out of their nostrils. "Remind me never to get her angry," Kyrunir mumbled with a shiver as she set them down.

"There, satisfactory to you ravenous wolves?" she asked, making a disgusted face when Lharom took one of the bunnies in his serrated talons and ripped its innards out with his sharp black beak. "Could you _please_ do that somewhere else? Or at least go catch a baby dolphin to eat?"

He snorted as he gulped the heart. "Wrong planet, lass. Here, the fish are big enough to eat me alive."

"Well, I wouldn't want to deprive them of a meal," Saesha grumbled, scraping together a pile of tinder as Lharom downed the last of his rabbit and licked his beak staring longingly at Saesha. "Go find your own meal, I'm done hunting." The griffin flattened his ear tufts, muttered a peculiar phrase, and went airborne with a flap of his tawny wings.

"Yeesh, grouch much," Raph muttered darkly, returning with larger branches to feed the small purple fire Saesha had going.

The little purple dragon glared icily at him, baring her teeth. "Nobody asked you, smart one," she growled ominously, puffing smoke. "If you want to eat, you'll have to skin them yourself." Don sighed and took one of the dead rabbits, pulling out a small shuruken from his belt. He made a long slit down its spine (A/N: I don't know how to skin anything, so don't screech at me for telling Don to use the wrong tools, you hear?) and carefully sawed under the fur to sever the skin from the meat. Kyrunir looked like he was fully prepared to go vomit sour bile into the surrounding bushes.

"If you can't stomach it, look away," Don suggested bluntly, tearing off the right side of the fur and throwing it to the side. The rukit happily complied and for good measure turned his back to the bloody scene. When he'd finished skinning one rabbit, he handed the carcass to Raph, who grimaced and stabbed his Sai into the rear end of the animal, pushing until it protruded from its mouth. This made a primitive rotisserie roaster, provided that some one stay by the handle of the Sai and keep turning it to cook the meat evenly. And that some one ended up being Rijinn, who had to stand on his hind legs to keep the rabbit above the fire.

"Saesha, can't you turn this thing with your telekinesis?" he whined, nearly falling over because his balance was skewed.

She opened one eye and took a second from Don, holding it over the fire. "I'll do only one," she said, keeping her head in the same relaxed, superior position. "You males are so pitiful when it comes to working with food. Everybody except Mikey burns even the simplest thing, like eggs."

Raph took his other Sai and forced it up the third rabbit's anus. "Hey, quit insultin' us. We got other talents."

"Ah yes. I seem to have forgotten the skill of being a brainless moron without trying at all." The turtle glared at her and Don rolled his eyes in exasperation, spotting Lharom coming in for a landing.

"Alright, I'll admit, I did manage to catch some fish," the griffin grumbled in defeat as he landed heavily next to Ukeera's prone form. "But they had mommas! And by the Claw, those mommas thought I was their next snack!" Saesha opened her eye and smirked cynically along with Raph. "What?"

"For one, you look like a covey after a bath, because your feathers are flat against your skin—"

"Knock it off, lass, I ain't no duck," he growled, puffing out his feathers indignantly. "My shafts ain't oiled with…oil."

"And two, there's a fish biting your tail," Saesha finished with an evil grin.

Lharom turned his head and screeched in mock fury at the flopping fish currently holding onto his lion tail with its teeth. "Offa my tail, blighter! Yeow, that hurts!" He yowled painfully and pranced lightly around on his toes, whapping the stubborn fish against every tree trunk he could find. When it finally let go and fell limply to the ground, he snapped it up hungrily. Saesha puffed smoke.

"Rijinn, your rabbit is on fire," she pointed out with a chuckle, lifting her own out as the flames jumped up and clung to her brother's bunny. He squealed and fell backward, bringing the enflamed body down with him. Lharom padded over and blew on it gently, putting out the fire as the red dragon panted, looking for all the world like a chicken with its heart nearly scared right out of him.

"Thanks a lot, sis!" he grouched shakily, scrambling up. She ignored him and gave her rabbit to Don and Kyrunir. The two carefully picked the meat off the bones. Within minutes, the bunny was no more than a pile of bones in the leaves. Raph was having a lot more success than they were, because he had something to hold the piping hot meat on. He finished his rabbit off just as Rijinn did his.

"Now that we're all filled up, I suggest we get a move on." Saesha stood and stretched like a cat, yawning and showing off her white teeth.

Lharom looked at the quartet of messy males in distaste, flattening his ear tufts and staring down his beak at them. "Nuh-uh, they're not riding me with those sticky fingers. Off to the stream with you scoundrels!" he squawked.

"It'd kinda help if we knew where it was," Raph deadpanned, crossing his arms in a dare.

"To your right for about twenty paces, then through a gorge. You should find it easily."

Don was the first to be gone. He was off like a shot. "Don't understand why he's got hot feet about sticky fingers," Raph grunted as Rijinn hopped up on his shoulder. "Douses 'um in engine oil all the time." Kyrunir waited hesitantly for a second before following the grumbling turtle. Once all four had washed their filthy phalanges (and claws), they clambered onto Lharom. The griffin stood patiently as Kyrunir tried to heave Ukeera onto his back.

"Y'know, I think she's just stayin' out cold for the attention," Rijinn said when the rukit finally got his friend on. When they were all situated, Lharom gave a short squawk and went skyward. Don felt his stomach lurch as the ground fell away, fading into green landscape and trees. As the griffin flapped steadily to gain altitude, the turtle was aware of Kyrunir's fearful grip on his shell, a well-known gesture of If I fall, you're coming with me!". He gripped Lharom's neck feathers a bit tighter for reassurance. It had been a while since he'd flew in this fashion, the last time being when Aireilei, Bima, Leo and himself were in a race to get to New York before Tiquae unlocked the power of the dragons and Raph was killed.

"Hey, you're pinchin' my skin, Donatello! Ease up a bit!" He sheepishly let Lharom have more freedom to move. "That's better, lad! Now, keep your balance!" The griffin went into a shallow dive, but it was enough to catch Raph off guard. The red-clad turtle caught sight of the ground, which happened to be a bad idea in itself. When he flew on dragonback the first incident, he had tossed his cookies onto a man's BMW. That man hadn't been too happy, as Don recalled, spouting profanities and various oaths that he'd learn to shoot flying targets. The turtle had been present for the whole occasion, watching from the shadow of an alley balcony rail and trying very hard not to burst Leo's eardrums through the Shell Cell by letting out a soft chortle (amplified on the receiving end through wonderful technology).

Raph's red eyes widened , then they crossed in a woozy sort of way. "Oh crud…" He turned an interesting shade of murky green, cheeks filling, before losing his half-digested rabbit to the sandy ground below. Saesha shot a malicious smirk at him as she flew. Rijinn looked as though he was about to lose the miniscule control he had over his quickly bubbling laughter. Raph clung, sickened, to Lharom's rump. "Shut up, guys," he growled weakly. That did it. Rijinn burst out in howling guffaws, nearly forgetting to flap in his hysterical glee.

Don shook his head at the guffawing duo, somewhat sorry for Raph. He'd almost forgotten his brother passionately loathed flying. He chanced a look back at Kyrunir and saw he was too busy holding on for dear life to his shell. He wrapped his tail around the rukit's waist for reassurance before turning back around.

To his right were jagged, rocky cliffs that cut off into steep drops. The waves below smashed the rocks with such fury that it was seem there was an invisible storm going on. In reality, offshore there were gathered a group of about five fish-like creatures, all wailing and flailing around in the water. "I take it those are the mommas you spoke of?" Don asked Lharom.

The griffin turned his head and twisted his beak down into a frown. "Yup, that's them. Still bawling I see." He returned his attention to flying and settled into a long glide, locking his wings. "Why, I couldn't tell you. All I did was steal an invalid from the back." He could still hear faint chuckles from Rijinn and Saesha. Raph was having a misery of a time back there, he was sure. "Going down!" The inevitable barfing noise came, followed by several more uncontrollable chortles and giggles from the two dragons.

"Dang it, I hate flying!"

"That's obvious," Saesha replied with a chuckle, doing a loop-de-loop. "You needn't announce it for all the world to hear."

A palm frond cut off his pitiful retort. Lharom landed in a clearing of sand and rocks, immediately bouncing Raph off so he could spit and curse where he pleased. Don slid off a little more gracefully than his brother did, actually landing on his feet.

"Ky? Where are we?"

Looked like Ukeera had finally woken up. And currently, she was still on Lharom's back. "I'll tell you later, lass, but in the mean time, getcher butt offa my fur, will ya?" The griffin turned his head and saw an immediate pale in her complexion.

"Please don't scream, Ukeera," Don said, waving his arms around wildly when she parted her jaws. "He's on our side! And plus, you might alert more orcs of our presence!" Trembling slightly, she shut her maw and scrambled down hurriedly, as if his fur burned her. Lharom muttered something in exasperation before turning into his wolfena form.

Kyrunir smiled shyly at his friend from a distance. "Hi, Ukeera."

"I think he's crushing on you," Saesha whispered to the female rukit, landing on her shoulder.

She looked quizzically at her. "What's that?"

"He likes you."

"Saesha, we've been friends ever since—"

"No, I mean _love_!" She let her ears and tail droop in surprise.

"Don't act so shocked. You had it coming."

"Ahem," Lharom growled, bristling to get their attention. "Let's get moving before noon sets in. It can get powerful hot out here unless you've found shade." The wolfena padded away into the palm fronds and ferns, parting them like a bulldozer.

Don had just slipped his Bo back in its holster when Raph sidled up to him. "Y'know who exactly this Lharom guy is?"

"Not a clue. What I'm sure of is that Saesha met him _somewhere_, because they're on a first-name basis with each other." Raph shrugged and swaggered out of the clearing, following Lharom's tracks. When he came out on the other side, he saw a wide expanse of cliffs, ferns, grass, and several boulders. In the far distance was a house that looked like it was on…fire? Lharom could be seen dashing toward the burning cottage, howling and barking like his own tail was on flames. "What the shell is he doing?"

"Mourning the death of somebody else's house, it looks like." The wolfena arrived at the scene and began sniffing furiously amongst the wreckage. Don hmmed and scratched his chin before dashing with the speed of a gazelle to the burning structure.

"Oh, he's not going to be happy about this," the wolfena was muttering when Don stopped behind him. "No sirree. This has to be the fifth they've burned in two months."

"Dakari I take it?" Don asked.

Lharom turned his head and wrinkled his snout. "Yeah." He resumed sniffing. "Bloody Claw knows how many times he's had to move…Stupid Empire…" The turtle stared a bit at him before wading through the piles of ash and charred wood.

"Why exactly are they after him?"

"Basically same as me, only he's only been to this world and not others. He's been interfering with their plans for nearly four years now." Don winced.

"So, now what do we do?" Raph asked rudely, coming up from behind.

"Well, where were you going in the first place?" Lharom retorted, locking his yellow eyes with the turtle's crimson ones.

"Dunno. Our tour guides are supposed to have that stuff."

The wolfena perked his ears forward. "May I give you a tip, boys?" he said, twitching his tail. Don and Raph looked quizzically at each other. "Duck." Both turtles sighted arrows flying at them and sucked their heads into their shells with yelps.

"Sometimes I just love my anatomy," Raph growled, peering out. Lharom charged at the mess of rocks from which the steady stream of arrows was coming, leaping over the ridge. Several sharp screams echoed and the arrows stopped flying. The wolfena reappeared over the rocky ridge, teeth and claws tainted with red blood.

"Eeew," Ukeera squealed. "What the Claw were you doing?"

"Stragglers," he replied shortly, wiping his claws on the stubby grass. "They were lying in wait for travelers, ones with money. None of you would have been in any immediate danger, because you don't carry currency on you."

"Wonderful," Raph muttered, head now fully out of his shell. "Just wonderful. Two ambushes in one friggin' day." Don slapped him upside the head, extracting a growl from his short-tempered brother.

Kyrunir eyed Lharom's bloody mouth squeamishly, looking just about ready to toss his cookies. "Is that blood?" he asked faintly. Everybody stared at him as he passed out cold and collapsed like a sack.

"And oh joy! Another unconscious kiddo to lug around!" Raph received another slap.

Ukeera rolled her eyes and snorted. "Wimp. He hates the very sight of blood."

"Well, we all know _he _won't get recruited for the Rebels any time soon," Lharom said. "It's obvious Dakari wasn't here when they attacked, so he must be exploring. If I can pick up his scent…" He snuffled along the ground, snorting out ash. "Blasted ashes keep getting up my nose!" he growled, sneezing. "Ah, here we are! Watishi. Oh boy, I keep telling that teela to take a bath once or twice, but no…"

"So where are we going now?" Saesha asked, settling on Don's shoulder.

"We're going to find Dakari. I've got a few things to discuss with the rabbit."

"He's a _rabbit_?" Raph exclaimed in disbelief.

"Didn't I tell you? Poor kid lost the Battle Nexus it seems. And his cousin ain't much help either."

Raph and Don exchanged glances. "Usagi," the purple-clad turtle mused thoughtfully. "Usagi must be the cousin. I don't know any other talking rabbits, do you, Raph?"

"Not unless you mean that twerp who just fainted," he retorted rudely. Another slap.

"Will you knock it off? Next time I'll use a branch, not my hand!"

* * *

Dakari crept along in the thicket vegetation like a ghost, not making a sound. This was one of the few times he ever had to be serious about something. He stopped about twenty feet from the band of orcs they were after, quietly pulling out a katana. He turned his head and nodded at one of the gunghir. She picked up a rock and pitched it over the circle of enemies, landing it behind one. 

"Gah! Great snitch beetles, what was that?" he cried, jumping up and turning. "Eh?" He scratched his dirty head.

Dakari bolted from his cover and slashed off his head. The fire ring came alive with orcs and war bellows. Arrows whistled out of the bushes, burying themselves in chests. The rabbit samurai whirled, kicked a sword out of an enemy's hands, and cut open his stomach. "Hiya!" Dakari ducked and swept an orc's feet out from under him. He leapt up and jammed his katana in the orc's chest, ending his life.

Arrows continued to fly everywhere, some missing, others not. Very soon, the orcs were demolished. The victorious gunghir stepped out of the bushes, smiling grimly. "That was easy," one commented.

"Yes, it was," Dakari agreed, wiping his blade on the grass and sheathing it. Screams came from the east. "Sounds like Leonardo-san is also victorious." He raised his ear. "And Tor also."

"Pitiful." The rabbit looked up. The moon was on the verge of going down below the horizon. Dawn was coming.

"Aye," the gunghir chorused.

"I'm hungry."

"Aye."

"Will you shut up?"

"Aye."

"Oi."

"Aye." Dakari chuckled as Leo came up.

"They're all gone, Dakari. We did it," he said wearily as Erori giggled.

"Aye."

"WILL YOU IDIOTS SHUT YOUR TRAPS?" the commenting gunghir all but screamed.

"Aye."

"I rest my case," she grumbled.

"Aye."

"Argh!"

"So, what now?" Leo asked as Fyla came up behind him.

"We get on with our lives," she answered, taking Erori from his tail. "You have my humblest thanks." The gunghir mother seized Leo in a stifling hug and then kissed him on the cheek. The turtle blushed furiously and stammered a sheepish, "You're welcome."

"Leonardo-san, when dawn arrives, we must go southwest. I fear the Empire has burned my house down. Again," he said wryly. "And I do believe Watishi and Tunali are getting lonely." Dakari suddenly noticed Leo's bruises. "How in the name of…?"

"I gave Erori milk and to get it, I had to milk Watishi," he answered with a chuckle.

The rabbit laughed. "I should have told you, they don't like getting milked."

"Might have been useful info."

"Aye," the gunghir chorused again.

"I'm being punished, aren't I?" the commentator grumbled.

"Aye."

Warm light peeped over the mountain peaks, revealing pink clouds. Leo felt unusually peaceful watching the sunrise. "Beautiful isn't it?" Fyla said softly, bouncing Erori up and down.

"Aye."

"Oh, for the love of…"

"I don't know how else I can thank you for taking care of my baby," Fyla continued, ignoring the choir of 'Aye'rs.

"Really, I don't need anything," Leo replied hurriedly. She stared at him.

"It wouldn't be right," Fyla shot back.

"Aye."

"Heaven help me, if you don't stop that, I'll through you into an oljis thorn bush!"

"Aye."

"That would hurt," one added.

"Aye."

"I hope whoever made that word is getting incinerated down there," she muttered, pointing to the ground.

"Aye."

"Shut…up," she growled.

The sunlight bathed them in warmth, lighting the bloody corpses and making them more noticeable. Leo looked away, trying to erase the grimacing faces from his mind. "I believe it's time to get the teelas and leave," Dakari said finally.

"Aren't you hungry?" Fyla asked.

"Aye."

Dakari glanced at Leo. "Do you need to eat?" A grumble from the turtle's lower plastron was his answer. "I'll take that as a yes. We would love to stay for breakfast, if it's no trouble."

"Not at all!" Fyla exclaimed. "But how are you going to get up?"

Leo looked down. "I can climb, if that's any help."

"Nah, we can fly you guys up!" Tor jumped into the conversation with a whoop.

"Tor, you're five hundred years old. You should have arthritis by now," Anorr grumbled.

"Aye."

"Jhadie, I'm cursed," the commentator whispered, burying her head in her fingers.

"Who cares if I'm old, I can still move like you can! Grab on, Dakari!" The ancient gunghir took to the sky with the rabbit clinging to his back. Leo watched from the ground.

"I might as well take you up myself," Anorr muttered. Leo clambered on, asking if he was too heavy. "Not at all," she grunted. "I'm sure most of it's muscle anyway." She launched herself powerfully into the air, flapping like crazy. When she set him down on a deck, she was panting heavily.

"Sorry," Leo apologized quickly.

"No, I needed the exercise. Now, you came up for food. Let's go to the mess, then." She led the way across bridges, through trees, and around decks until they arrived at a particularly large trunk. Anorr opened the door and delicious smells wafted out. It made Leo's stomach growl even more as they walked in.

He spotted Dakari picking idly at a cake of some sort. "I'm not very hungry. Would you like this?" he asked.

"Aye!" One of the 'aye'ing gunghir swept the cake off the rabbit's plate and gobbled it with a grin. Dakari rubbed his temples and sighed in exasperation.

* * *

"And we all know that's a rare occasion for you to miss your target, eh?" Knami grunted, panting heavily as the fighting stalled for a split second while both sides caught their breath. 

Kiara blinked rainwater out of her eyes and growled, "Quit being sarcastic, Knami, I don't have time for this!" Bima puffed black smoke and smiled grimly.

"We're losing troops fast," she mumbled blearily, spitting blue-white fire at a row of orcs that dared come too close. "I can feel their life force slipping away." The little dragon took a deep breath and roared menacingly, tackling an opponent to the ground and slashing his throat with her razor-sharp silver claws.

"We need a miracle. Where's Aireilei?"

"Chasing down that giant chicken and its fat turnip of a rider," Bima growled back, sending orcs howling with fire. Kiara parried a blow, ducked another, and killed two enemies with one swipe of her rapiers.

"Who do we think we're fooling?" she yelled, kicking an orc in the chest. "We can't win this!"

The silver-blue dragon on the ground muttered a curse. "They already know that! Why do you think they're leering at us now?" Just to prove her point, one of the filthy rats jeered and raised his sword. Kiara took that opportunity to hack his arm off, cutting down to separate his spine and hips. His decapitated body fell down spurting blood as his comrade got smashed into the mud by Knami's broadsword.

Kiara saw a flash of orange out of the corner of her eye. It was Mikey, whirling like a demon and cracking his 'chuks on the skulls of his adversaries. The rukit blocked a slash, eyes still on the turtle. An orc had sneaked up behind the oblivious boy, a large club raised. She shouted a warning, but the sounds of clashing metal and war cries drowned her out. He crumpled to the ground, out cold.

Screaming curses like a mad man, Kiara plowed straight through the many orcs blocking her path, throwing them aside as if they were featherweight. She arrived just in time to save Mike from a fatal blow to the neck, killing the owner instantly with her own retaliatory strike. The rukit readied herself to protect Mikey with her own body, putting up her swords in a defensive stance. Nobody moved for about five seconds. Then they charged.

Kiara franticly slashed and hacked in any direction possible, but there were too many for her to kill on her own. She was too busy protecting the torso of Mikey to know that the same club-wielding orc was coming up behind her. The rukit felt a sudden abrupt pain in the back of her skull and saw a flash of white before her vision went dark and she collapsed into unconsciousness.

"Will she be okay?"

"I dunno…she took a heavy blow to the noggin. You don't get up unhurt after being clubbed with an old beater like that thing."

"Head trauma. Other than that and a few other cuts, she'll be fine."

The fuzzy voices made her head hurt. She opened her eyes and blinked in confusion, seeing Aireilei, Iwansi, and Sor standing over her. "What happened?" Kiara asked, feeling a bit dizzy.

Aireilei frowned. "You're not supposed to be talking, sister. That makes it harder to settle you down and get you healed. Hold still." The white dragon gripped the rukit's arms, closing her eyes and beginning to glow. Kiara felt all of her pain melt away into the dark recesses of her mind, gone for the time being. When she finally let go, Kiara could sit up without feeling needles stabbing into her body.

"Where's Mikey, is he alright?" she inquired suddenly, remembering the last thing she was doing.

"He's fine. Still out cold, but fine. He got off better than you did."

Knami pulled aside the flap of the tent they were in. He looked like he'd been weeping. "Don't you ever do that again!" he growled threateningly. "You scared me toCurulaey and back with that stunt of yours! Kiara, you're like a daughter to me!" The creamy white rukit wiped his eyes and grabbed her in a bear hug.

Iwansi rolled her eyes. "Pinch me. This weepy reunion is giving me a headache." The yellow dragon stalked off, still muttering disgusted phrases.

Kiara pried the weepy Knami off of her. "Will somebody please tell me what the bloody Claw is going on?"

Aireilei rubbed her snout. "Well, after you and Michelangelo lost consciousness, Bima jumped in and saved you both from a beheading. She's currently sleeping in the healer's room with no wings." Kiara winced, thinking of the incredible sacrifice that was. No flying meant she was just as good as a fire-breathing lizard now. "Though she was still in agony, she held the orcs off until Knami could arrive and carry Mikey up to Sor, where he stayed until the end of the battle. He had difficulty getting you to safety, because you were fighting his grip like one possessed."

"Yes, you nearly clawed my eye out," Knami inserted ruefully.

"After you two had gotten far enough away from the battle that you wouldn't be hurt any more, we continued to fight them. I brought down the griffin after several shots from my bow, but the orcs kept the fighting up." Aireilei sighed and examined a claw. "Since I could see we weren't going to win without help, I sent Iwansi to get a friend. I hoped he was still free of Xetyphaes' control, for if not, we would have lost."

Kiara was getting curious. "Who's your friend?"

She smiled. "He's too big to walk amongst the camp, so he's waiting along the rim. I was going to have a talk with him, but you came first, as did my sister." Kiara opened her mouth to say something, but Aireilei held up a hand. "And before you ask, yes, Bima is related to me. I am the eldest of Rainbou's last clutch of eggs, which is because I hatched first."

Before Kiara could reply, Iwansi came padding back inside, a scowl on her face. "I've never seen Bima so dismal in my life. Do you realize," she growled at Kiara, "what you've cost my sister? Her flight! That was one of the two things that made her a dragon!"

Aireilei grabbed her smaller sister by her tail. "Enough, Iwansi. I've already spoken with Bima about it. She knew what the consequences were going to be and she accepted them. Quit moping around for her. She can do that herself." At that moment, the aforementioned dragon limped into their tent and grinned weakly.

"You oughta see the other guy," she said, falling over.

"She's delirious." Aireilei put a hand on Bima's side, glowing with a white aura again.

"I'm not delirious, I'm trying to lighten the mood, sis."

"I'm sure. Get back in bed, you hoodlum. That healer's going to screech something awful if she sees you out of bed."

Bima scowled darkly. "That old bat's crazy. I don't need any sleep, I came in here to see what the fuss was all about." Kiara felt a wave of guilt wash over her when she scanned Bima's unmarred body. Her wings were nowhere to be seen. She was handicapped now.

Sor grunted. "I'll go check on Mikey now."

Iwansi squirmed out of Aireilei's grasp, landing on the floor. "Well, I suppose I'll go visit Naicro now. He's sounds lonely."

"May I come?" Kiara asked politely.

"Eh, sure. You've been wondering about Aireilei's friend, haven't you?" The rukit nodded. "Very well, come with me." Iwansi sat down to scratch her ear with her cyborg leg before bounding out of the tent. Kiara followed carefully. When they arrived on the rim of the camp, she caught sight of the battlefield. Parts of it were on fire, which meant that the warriors had gathered the dead orcs and burned them. The smell of burning flesh filled her nostrils and she swallowed bile. "Come on, this way!" Iwansi poked her in the leg to get her attention. What she saw surprised even her.

Sitting in a ring of trees was an enormous pearly white lizard. He looked up at them with bright green eyes when they drew closer. "Good evening sister," he hissed through a slender muzzle filled with small sharp teeth. "What brings you here?"

Iwansi flopped down next to his forepaw and yawned. "Nothing really, Naicro. Just came to say hi."

The lizard wrinkled his snout. "It is quite odd that you speak in such a way, sister."

"Well, I've been on a different planet for about a millennium, so I don't see why you're so surprised."

"I liked you better when you were egg bound," Naicro muttered. Kiara chuckled and sat down by his side. "Daughter of earth, have you something to ask me?"

The rukit took off her greaves and chain mail. "What are you, Naicro?" she asked, feeling his scaly side.

He shut his eyes serenely. "I, daughter, am a Vern. A Vern is a Whurin dragon that lost its wings through choice."

"But you don't look like a dragon."

"There exist different species of dragon. My sisters and brothers who possess wings are known as Hiph Dragons. The child here is one of the remaining few."

Iwansi stretched and blinked. "Well, that makes me feel special," she grunted, resting her head on Naicro's forearm.

Naicro shifted slightly and turned his slender head to look at Kiara, who was dumbstruck with respect. "Daughter, if you rest your hand upon my shoulder, you will see that I have remnants of the wing bones." The rukit raised her hand and felt along his back. Two small bumps rose from the tops of his shoulders.

"What's Whurin?" Iwansi asked abruptly.

"It means thin in elvish," Kiara supplied. "And Hiph means high."

"You are correct," Naicro said with a nod. "I am the only Vern that walks this world now. My mate is in a deep sleep inside a crystal that an elf created so that when Xetyphaes was gone, we could have eggs. It is a lonely existence since Rainbou was captured. I remain the only free dragon besides the children of Rainbou." Kiara nodded solemnly.

"I can only imagine what he's doing to Rainbou," she sighed.

"When last I talked with her, she was in great mental pain. I have heard no more from her, but I believe he has made her his mind slave now. She has no control over what choices she makes."

Iwansi jerked in shock. "That's…that's awful!" she exclaimed. "My mother is…"

"Rainbou would rather die than hurt her children," Naicro hissed softly. "That is why Xetyphaes has not found Aireilei or you, child. The only person he tried interrogating was Niracan, her blind elf companion. She never said a word of your location either."

They all heard a sorrowful sigh. "If there was a way to free my mother from his control, I would find it." Kiara turned to see Aireilei standing by a tree, her periwinkle eyes sparkling with brimming tears. "She never deserved such a fate. I did. She took my place and I ran."

Naicro turned his head. "Do not blame yourself, child. She did that of her own accord. Do you really assume that she would cower in her cave while he bred you to griffins and used your sisters and brothers to make you comply? I think not." The white dragon let out a roar of soulless grief. "Come here, child." Aireilei tottered to him like a scared little girl to her father. "It will be alright. We shall find a way to free her, and if it be death, so be it." She curled up into a ball by his tail, covering herself with her huge wings to shut out the world. "Do not lose hope. There remains one dragon left whom you may recognize. Your father."

"What? We have a dad?" Iwansi asked in surprise.

"Of course, child. Did you assume that Aireilei and yourself were merely conceived of magic?"

"But she told me—"

Naicro rolled over, exposing his belly and taking Kiara's support from her back. "To conceive without mating is a rare thing indeed, child." Iwansi wrinkled her snout, trying to comprehend this. "Being conceived by magic makes you unrelated to your mother. Rainbou knew that, so when Yulakai mated her, she asked Niracan to keep one of the sperms inside her alive until you were born, Aireilei. Then when the improvised mating took place, she had a clutch of five eggs."

"I never knew it was that complex," the yellow dragon muttered thoughtfully, watching the green dots in her cyborg leg travel up and down.

"My father deserted me," Aireilei said with venom. "Naicro, what makes you think he'll come?"

"There is a reason he left you. He sensed that Xetyphaes was coming fifteen years prior to the invasion, when you were born. He never told your mother of it because he knew she would stop him from fighting." Aireilei unrolled and stared at the ground. "Yulakai intercepted Xetyphaes and his army when they arrived in the Hajai desert. He put a good-sized dent in their supply of fighters. If he had not done that, you would have all been taken by surprise and killed by a massive army of griffins and orcs."

"Where is he now?"

Naicro closed his eyes again. "None remain who know. I would assume that he is hiding in the Volcanic Wasteland because it is so desolate." Aireilei fell silent as the vern raised his head and took in a deep breath. "Come out, shadow child. It is no use hiding from me when I am able to smell you a mile away."

"Aw, rats." Mikey slid down a tree trunk, covered in leaves and twigs.

"I must say, you are a rather good shadow mage."

"He's no mage, Naicro. He's a ninja," Iwansi corrected.

The vern inclined his head. "My apologies. You could be a shadow child without magic, am I correct?"

Michelangelo scratched his yellow ear. "Uh, yeah, sure Shakespeare lizard. Hey, Rei, you in pain or something?"

Kiara shook her head. "No, she's just in shock."

"Why? She doesn't have to be in shock. I always knew Iwansi wasn't the prettiest dragon." Iwansi gave him a dirty look as he sat down by Kiara. "Thanks for saving my butt, Kiara."

"I wasn't much better. I got clubbed about a minute after you."

"How'd we win anyway?"

"This Hiph Dragon child went and fetched me from my cave. I knew her color was that of one of the eggs I saw Rainbou lay, so I followed her back to the flank of the orcs." Iwansi nodded. "The battlefield was much worse than I had feared it would be. The elves and rukits were nearly all dead. As I understand, I came right when the Hiph child Kiyo was spent of all energy. The storm cleared away without his wind to power it and the orcs surged forward. If not for my arrival, I believe you would all be dead now." Mikey gulped loudly. "As soon as Aireilei had put an end to the commander's griffin and himself, I began my work on the right flank. The fire mage saw me attacking and yelled a joyful cry. That was all the weary fighters needed to regain their strength and destroy the enemy."

"Wow. So basically, we kicked their shells." Mikey let out a whoop and yelled, "Yeah!"

Naicro stared with green eyes. "I had not expected one to be so jubilant."

"That's me, Michelangelo," he said with a wide grin. "I'm the party dude. My bros think I get pretty annoying sometimes. I just do it to push their buttons most of the time."

"You have siblings, shadow child?" the vern asked.

"Yup. Three and a Sensei. Leo's the serious one. I don't think I've ever seen him do anything but ninjitsu training. I pull pranks on him to loosen him up. Raph's the one who'll beat you up if you push his buttons too much. I get a lot of exercise running from that guy." Kiara chuckled. "Then there's Donnie. He's a genius. He can basically fix anything you please. The TV's always getting repaired because Raph puts a Sai in it every time his favorite wrestler loses."

Before Naicro could ask what a television was, Iwansi answered, "A TV is a glass box that plays moving images on the screen."

"Fascinating," he mumbled thoughtfully. "And what is your Sensei's name, shadow child?"

"Dude, my name's Michelangelo. And my Sensei's Master Splinter."

"Is he a kaseilala bacude also?"

Mikey scratched his ear. "Come again?"

"He asked if Splinter was a shell back too," Kiara said. "Naicro, you must learn not to speak elvish around him, he doesn't understand a word of it."

"I apologize, I was in error," the vern replied, blinking.

"Splinter's a rat."

"A what?"

"A rat is kind of like a Chivva only it has no fur on its one tail and doesn't have ears as big," Aireilei mumbled softly.

"I see. And is this Splinter as large as you are, Michelangelo?"

"Nah, he's about a foot or two shorter," the turtle said, scratching his ear again. "Man, I think I've got fleas." Iwansi turned her head, stared for a few seconds, and burst out in hearty guffaws. "Laugh while you can, you've got hair." Kiara chuckled at the look on the dragon's face.

* * *

Ahem. Now, to the actual note. I've got two pictures up for your viewing pleasure on my homepage: A Don mug shot that I colored (yay!) and shaded (booyah) in approximately an hour. The other is in the scraps section of my devArt account, which is a rough sketch of Aireilei. Up until now, I was struggling to get her anatomy right. Heehee, I went crazy on my deviantArt account. There's a fully colored Raph pic AND my online alias. Go check out the goodies.

LN


	8. Bunny Fun!

**Disclaimer: **I really don't own any of the turtles. Seriously, they're the only four in this story I _don't _own. But if you're talking Naicro or Kiara, they're both mine.

A/N: I finished that Haradris World map. It's currently sitting happily on my homepage. (growls) I'm currently trying to break my habit of chicken-pecking on the keyboard, so if any of you happen to see a misspelled word, blame my fingers and eyes who can't work together correctly to save their lives. And about Don and Raph's segment...so sue me. I'm getting sick. The room spins whenever I get up. Same with Mikey's. The only reason Leo's is so long is because I had a burst of inspiration. Typing makes me dizzy now. I had felt the need to submit this before I veg out before the TV playing the TMNT Movie (yes, I did finally rent it, along with the second one).

**8.**

After Leo had satisfied his thunderous stomach's roars of hunger with some strange (yet extremely tasty) Haradrian form of pancakes and hash browns, the turtle felt drowsy. The room started to blur a bit. _Guess this is what is feels like to be full, _he muttered to himself, cutting back an enormous belch. The repercussion, however, still reached Dakari's long ears. The rabbit grinned and rolled his bright blue eyes as Leo sourly mouthed 'What?' in indignation as his bowel section began making satisfied rumbles, a sure sign digestion was beginning.

"You truly are loud after you are finished with a large meal, Leonardo," he teased mercilessly, lacing his fingers together and smiling suggestively at the turtle from the other side of the thick wood table. Leo grunted and stayed silent for the sake of his dignity, moving his tail under his chair to protect from gunghir feet, even though they wore no shoes; their leathery soles were tough enough to hurt a limb lying unprotected on the floor. "I gather from your intestinal noises that you have not eaten for some time. Am I correct?" The turtle glared at him as he chuckled behind his dark gray hands. He didn't trust himself to try and talk for fear a burp would bubble up and explode without warning.

The mess hall noises were distracting at most. Metallic clatters erupted from the kitchen every now and then, signaling a hurried washing of plates and trays. The smells wafting from the buffet-like counter were warm and made Leo think of Mike's cooking. Always when he was in his room writing another journal entry in his battered blue book, wonderful smells came to interrupt his train of thought. It didn't matter if he was hungry or not, somehow the smell of Mike's cooking summoned his hidden craving for food.

"Your eyelids are drooping, Leonardo-san." Leo started and glared icily at his laughing companion, continuing to keep his annoyances mute. _What I would give for a sock about now, _he thought grimly, envisioning himself stuffing it into Dakari's mouth. Apparently the look on his face was enough to attract Erori's undivided attention. The little gunghir child was situated a table away and began giggling ceaselessly in toddler mirth. Dakari noticed her entertained state and took on an evil countenance.

"Don't you say a word," Leo mumbled darkly, barely parting his jaws. He knew there were belches brewing deep within his stomach and he didn't want them coming out until he was out of every gunghir's hearing range. "Or so help me, you wake up in a very uncomfortable place," he added as a threat. Dakari's dancing eyes widened daringly, as did his grin.

"I should like to see you try," the rabbit replied cheekily, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms.

"Is that a challenge?" Leo growled playfully. _Oh, if only Raph could see me now…he'd have a fit._

Just at that very moment, Anorr stopped at their table and gave them both a glare. "Take it outside, boys," she said sharply, pointing to the door.

"What do you take us for? Barbarians?"

"Suffice it to say, yes, very much so, you two reckless hooligans!"

Dakari winked shamelessly at her. "Us two reckless hooligans saved your hide, Anorr." He received a quick slap in the skull for his impudence. Leo hid a satisfied chuckle as he rubbed his head, mocking a pained wince. "You wound me, fair lady." Anorr flushed so brightly she most likely could have thrown him off the tree at that moment, he was sure. The gunghir ended the confrontation with a snort, Dakari's chair being slid out from under him by a sly movement of her foot. His rear hit the floor hard as she walked away. "Ow! Methinks it's time to go now! The inhabitants are turning against me!" Leo grinned.

"That's right, they're turning against _you_," he said casually, scratching an ear."And frankly, I don't blame them, Mr. Rejected Bachelor Rabbit."Dakari scowled blackly as he stood, shaking a clenched fist.

"Alright, let's see you get a lady to flutter her long lashes at you within the next five seconds!" the rabbit demanded smugly.

"Don't have to." Leo motioned at Fyla without turning around, who kept staring at his shell with a questionable look on her face.

Dakari snorted at the supposed unfairness of that. "Oh, hey now, you cannot use _her _for this! You know she would probably kiss you withou—" Leo pitched a left over pancake at his face, cutting him off effectively. "This means war," he growled as the article of food slid off his nose to plop on his plate. The turtle stuck his pink tongue out tauntingly.

"Not if referee Anorr gets her way." He felt a hard object collide with his skull, extracting a pained yelp.

"That'll be enough out of you two today," Anorr said, her voice dangerously low. She tapped the wooden ladle against her hand, signifying the next consequence would certainly be a larger goose egg than the first. "Behave, boys." The gunghir walked away as Dakari pulled up his seat again and sat down.

"Ungrateful bat," the samurai grumbled, making a face.

"Tor! Get off that table right now!" they heard Anorr bellow commandingly. Leo could see the ancient gunghir dancing on a long banquet table on the other side of the mess hall, hopping nimbly over platters and dishes with the ease and grace of long practice.

Dakari buried his head in his arms and groaned in exasperation. "That Tor…" Leo chuckled in amusement as Tor openly defied Anorr's order, blowing her a taunting kiss from his finger, having no real hands with which to do it. The angry gunghir on the floor stamped her foot and demanded loudly that somebody strap the elderly dancer in a retirement home.

"Oh, come now, dear!" Tor cried indignantly when she eyed her bow suggestively. "I've a right to be joyful! Why, our village has been liberated!"

"Ah'd 'preciate it if ya liberated me eatin' space too!" one gunghir sitting directly behind him grouched, pinching his heel with his index finger and thumb. Tor yelped and jumped up, flapping like crazy and almost bumping his head on the ceiling. He came to rest beside Leo, who was now roaring with laughter and fighting to stay seated. Dakari groaned again from where he sat, noticing that even the noise of the mess hall couldn't drown out his friend's boisterous laughter.

Tor looked around sheepishly. "What?" he asked innocently.

"The sight of you, the five hundred year-old grandpa of all gunghir, dancing on a table of all things, set him off," Dakari muttered, staring hard at the distantly giggling Leo. "What would Aireilei think of your foolish behavior?"

"Foolish? _Me_? Look who was just having a miniature food fight with a turtle!" Tor scoffed. "And Aireilei's been gone for as long as I've been alive, sonny!"

Leo chuckled, holding his stomach. Some of the food had been upset during his laughing fit and he was determined to refrain from spewing. "No, Tor, I'm pretty sure she came along with me and the rest of the gang," he said, clearing his throat of a few chuckles, the image of the table dancer still fresh in his mind.

"Hah. Nice try."

"No, I'm serious!" Tor raised his eyebrows, still unconvinced. "I know her like a best friend! I warped to this planet like the other dragons and my brothers!"

"Okay then, answer me two questions: What's her favorite food?"

Dakari yawned, the embarrassment of being seen with a wildly laughing turtle beginning to wear off. "He wouldn't know, Tor. Ask him a different question."

Tor slapped his forehead. "Um, okay! Got one! What color is she and in what order was she born with the other five?"

Leo ticked off on his fingers. "Aireilei's white. She came first, and eighteen years later, Bima hatched, followed by Rijinn, then Kiyo, Saesha, and Iwansi, in that order." The gunghir looked confused. "What?"

"I don't know who those five are."

"Oh, right. Aireilei told me they had Haradrian names but she didn't want to confuse them with the information." Tor's eyes widened.

"She's here? Oh, bloody Claw, where?"

Leo shrugged. "I know just as much as you do. I got separated from my brothers and the dragons because I was the last to notice we were in flux."

"Well, isn't that a lovely complication?" Tor grumbled, becoming stolid in composure.

Dakari stood. "We should go, Leonardo. I fear Watishi will bite my arm off if I wait any longer to visit her."

Leo grinned. "Your wife calls you," he said snidely. The samurai muttered a rude comment as his companion got up. Tor stayed where he was, fidgeting nervously. Leo shook his head before journeying to the door and stepping outside.

Lorra was an entirely different land in the daytime. The early morning sunlight lit the leaves, turning them into shimmering emeralds on stone branches. It was like a painting. The vast green mountains loomed in the distance. Leo immediately recognized the one he and Erori had crouched behind with a smile. A wide shimmering river wound down through a pass and cut across the wide plains. Dakari grumbled something, beginning to walk away. The turtle trotted after him.

"Well, what a lovely morning," Dakari grunted, looking down at the ground from atop a bridge. "Complete with a pancake in the face, an embarrassing event in which my comrade burst out laughing, and an ancient gunghir danced on a table! Oi!" He found a rope ladder and nimbly began descending the swinging thing. Leo leapt at it from a distance, latching onto the wooden rungs like his hands were steel hooks. He all but slid down the ladder, landing heavily on the loamy ground with a loud 'Ooof!' "Graceful landing."

Leo picked himself up and leaked a burp. "Oh drat," he said, hiccuping. Dakari chuckled at his expense, disappearing into a huge stump. The turtle ignored his jibe, swallowing a hiccup, as he skidded into the stable behind his friend.

A loud impatient moo came from one of the stalls, most likely Watishi. "Aaah! Please, stop that, Watishi! Ouch! Get off me!" When Leo was finally able to see what was going on, he grinned. Watishi, ever the equivalent of an angry wife, had Dakari pinned down in the hay on his back, her paws on his arms. She snorted in his face as he pleaded with her. "Let me up, friend!" The teela growled, laying her ears back and slapping the stall wall with her short, thick tail. "What have I done to deserve this?" he groaned.

"Well," Leo hiccuped. "You did leave her alone for around three hours." Watishi shot the turtle a death glare.

"And it appears," Dakari grunted in exertion, struggling under her, "that she hasn't forgotten you milked her."

"Heheh, I think I'll go get Tunali," he said nervously with another hiccup.

"Hey! Don't leave me here!" the gray rabbit yelled desperately, cut off by more pressure on his arms, a warning to him. "Oh dear…"

Tunali was overjoyed to see Leo again, as the headbutt to his plastron attested. He mooed happily, rubbing his head into the turtle's armored stomach. "Guess you missed me, huh boy?" He scratched Tunali's short mane, extracting several contented chirps from him. Assorted thumps in the next stall told him that Dakari was still underneath Watishi's paws. "Poor guy." Leo hiccuped again, bouncing up. In the process he spotted some short-bristled brushes hanging on the wall. _Wouldn't do any harm to groom the guy. _

He snatched one of them and set to work rubbing Tunali's side. The teela appeared to be in heaven, his eyes rolling up into his skull and his ears going out to the side. Leo worked his way around the rump to the other side. When he finished brushing, Tunali's light brown fur had a sheen to it that hadn't been there before.

Leo heard grunting and saw Dakari finally up, bruised on his upper arms. "Why I chose you out of a herd of _placid_ teelas I'll never remember," he grumbled, getting butted in the back for his comment. "Saddle up, Leonardo, we are leaving."

"You can call me Leo, Dakari. It's less of a mouthful."

"You're right; I hate being formal anyway." The rabbit bent down and seized Tunali's saddle and blanket, handing it to his companion. "Remember how to put it on?" he asked wryly, clearly thinking of Leo's last bout with the saddle.

"Yes," he replied sullenly, flipping the blue blanket onto the teela's back. For some reason, Tunali seemed taller than he recalled. Trying not to show his discomfort, the turtle stuck out his tongue and lifted the saddle quickly onto the teela's back. Sliding it backward into place, he tightened the front girth strap. The back one was a bit more uncomfortable, since he had to duck down a little under Tunali. When he finally had it secured, he took the bridle from Dakari, who was smiling suspiciously, as though he expected Leo to botch even this simple task. In the end, the turtle had every piece of equipment on his teela.

"Well, you did it in under five minutes," the rabbit declared cheerily, marching forward. Watishi, still annoyed with him, reached out with her mouth and nipped one of his long ears. "Ow, I thought you were done with that!" She snorted and butted him.

"Apparently not," Leo teased, leading Tunali out. Outside the stables were gathered the gunghir of Lorra, all ready to say goodbye. Anorr was near the front of the group, along with Fyla, Erori, and Tor, who looked fidgety still.

"Thanks for helping out," Anorr muttered, bowing. Leo smiled and returned the bow.

Fyla was obviously lost for words, her watering eyes fixed on him. "I'll never let Erori forget you saved her," she whimpered, wiping her eyes with an arm. The turtle waved with his fan tail and she sniffed in reply.

Tor grinned widely. "Thanks for alla your help!" Dakari grinned back.

"Goodbye, you old goat," the rabbit said with a wink.

"Oh, Leonardo? Tell Aireilei I said hello when you find her." Leo nodded as Dakari mounted Watishi. Just as he was going to clamber up onto Tunali, somebody shouted "Wait!"

Parting the crowd was a young boy gunghir and by the looks of things, he was clutching something pretty important. He skidded to a halt beside Tunali, panting. "I…wanted to give this to you, Leonardo!" he whispered, holding out his prize. Leo looked curiously at it. It was a green gem in the rough shape of a turtle. "I made it…last night…" he explained, gulping air by the mouthfuls. "My dad taught me how to make it. It's a sword pendant. You can put it on any part of your katanas and they'll stick forever. It's kinda like a good luck charm."

Leo had no idea how to respond as he took it. "I'm honored."

The boy blinked and smiled. "I'm gonna be like you and Sor one day. You make me feel brave," he said quietly.

"I'll treasure it, thanks."

"Bye," he mumbled with a wave of his wing. Dakari gently heeled Watishi, spurring her forward. Tunali sprang after them with an excited moan, pounding through the grass. Leo watched the boy fade into the distance, along with the other gunghir. The turtle opened his hand to look at the sword pendant.

"_You can put it on any part of your sword."_

The handle? Yep. Amidst the bouncing, Leo managed to get out a sword; his right one. He held the blade side down toward the ground, handle up. When the metal was within an inch of the pendant, the green turtle gem snapped right on. With a grin, he twisted around and waved his glinting katana in the sun as he entered the foothills of the Darian Mountains.

* * *

"When I said I didn't want to walk all the way to the VW, I _certainly _didn't mean this!" Mikey grouched darkly. Where was he? Uh-huh. Riding Naicro. "Gee, don't you have shocks or something? This is awfully bumpy!" 

Kiara was equally as jarred. "I curse those with wings," she growled, yelping when a particularly large bound caught her off guard.

An hour earlier, they had been in the clearing, still discussing matters with Naicro. Then the ancient Vern declared he was going to travel with them. Naturally Aireilei objected because of his age, but the dragon wouldn't have it. Sor and Kiara came because they were tired of the army.

"Hey, don't curse 'em," Bima squeaked from atop Naicro's head. "Beg 'em for a ride!" Without her wings her sense of balance was skewed, and Naicro's gliding steps made it very hard not to fall off, which is why Bima was holding onto the white vern's ears for dear life.

"If they were larger, I would," Kiara retorted, swinging her arms around wildly when Naicro jumped a bump.

"Hey!" Iwansi squealed indignantly. "Was that an insult?"

"Are swamp slugs slimy?" The yellow dragon growled and made as if to flame the rukit off of Naicro's back, but a sagely warning growl kept her in check.

"Knock the theatrics off, guys," Aireilei said, glaring at them. Mikey shrugged semi-helplessly. "Naicro, how are you holding out?"

He sped up, just to surprise her. "Did you expect my joints to begin creaking within the first mile, child?" he asked, causing an embarrassed blush to rise to her face.

"Well, no, it's just that…"

"Concern for the elderly is natural?"

"You're no spring chicken yourself, Aireilei," Mike pointed out, grabbing at Naicro when he threatened to slide off and bite the dust.

"He does have a valid point. Compared to the shadow child—" (Mikey muttered in half-annoyance, "_Mikey_.") "—you are nearly fifty times his age." (A/N: I didn't do the math:)

"What's the point?"

Naicro fell silent. "Oh, I don't know, maybe that he's ancient and we're little kids compared to him?" Mike suggested.

"Exactly, little one," the vern crowed. "But now, settle in for a long ride. We stop at dusk." The turtle noticed that the sun was at the afternoon point and did his best not to groan. There would be sore bottoms galore by the time they stopped.

* * *

"Lemme guess; we're gonna go on a rabbit hunt, right?" Raph asked sourly, rubbing his noggin. Those blows Don had dealt his skull certainly weren't a butterfly brush of the skin; more like an elephant stomp. 

Lharom stared at him, exasperation clear on his muzzle. "What else _would _we do? Sit here and lay piles of poo all day, eating grass?" he deadpanned, making Ukeera giggle somewhat. "Yes, we're going to find him. I should expect he'd be hanging around the elven village of Aloria."

"_Elves_? Oh great. Would this happen to have anything to do with Legolas or Arwen? Don't tell me there are hobbits running around here!" he groaned, Don shooting him a warning glare.

"I know of none who are named that," Lharom retorted, rearing on his hind legs to see over the cliff. "Blasted things are still weeping."

Raph snorted. "Yeah, well maybe it's because their eyes are permanently scarred from seein' your ugly mug," he growled, receiving a lash from Saesha's tail.

"We'd better get going," the wolfena muttered, spotting angry black clouds over the turquoise water on the horizon. "Unless we want to stay for a shower and maybe a couple of shocks."

Ukeera shivered visibly, her hackles going up like spikes. "No thank you! I'd rather take my chances with the orcs."

Lharom fell back down on all fours. A slight wind was already blowing, scented with brine, and making goose bumps appear on everyone's skin. The rukits hid it better than Don and Raph did. Saesha and Rijinn were immune to cold because of their internal fire. "Ukeera! Up! Now!" The rukit scrambled to her feet hastily and vaulted onto his back. "Somebody gonna get that deadweight a lift, or are we going to leave him here?" he asked, nodding his head in the direction of the passed out Kyrunir.

"Can we vote? Because I favor the leave him here option," Raph said, raising his hand.

Don sighed and rubbed his temples. "Raph, can you refrain from verbally assaulting the unconscious for just a day? That's all I ask!" he groaned, removing his Bo as he clambered on behind Ukeera. Raph snorted again, mumbling something along the lines of ''nother Leo's the _last _thing I need'.

Saesha rolled her amethyst eyes. "Quarrelsome teenagers. The world's bane. I'll take the little one for now, Lharom." She glowed a bright purple, and Kyrunir's limp body began floating into the air.

"Thank yah, lass. That leaves me with two well-behaved adults and one bratty toddler." Ukeera, despite her attitude toward Lharom, giggled behind her hand as Raph scowled blackly at the remark. "Now, Raphael, are you gonna walk, or are you gonna get on and quit makin' murderous faces at me?" The turtle grumbled loudly and scrambled onto Lharom's back, taking hold of his thick fur. No sooner had he gotten a good grip the wolfena reared up, wheeled around, and plunged down into the grass. The whole motion nearly threw all three passengers from their seats.

After two hours of riding, the rag tag bunch decided to take a break. Kyrunir, who was well awake by now, sat on the grassy ground, looking quite dizzy. Raph and Don slid off Lharom, landing lightly on their toes.

"Hey guys! Come here a minute!" Rijinn called from atop a small hill. Ukeera was there in a flash of black.

"That's Wurhin Lake," she supplied, pointing at the thin layer of water on the horizon. "We're about seven hours from it; the only reason you can see it is because it's so huge."

"This is the farthest from home we've ever been," Kyrunir muttered from his place on the grass. Lharom shot him an odd look before changing his shape into a covey.

Don stared at the cat-like creature. "Lharom, what's your real form?" The covey returned the stare with equal ferocity. "I mean, what were you before you began shifting?"

"Truthfully?" he asked to Don's nod. "I don't know."

"You don't _know_?"

"It's possible to forget your original race after being in animal forms for this long a time." Raph chuckled at his expense.

"Give the guy a break," Rijinn said, landing beside Kyrunir. "It's hard enough dealing with you four."

Lharom raised his eyebrow. "There's actually five including yourself, dragon." The red dragon scowled. "Now then, Raphael, go get some kindling. And no buts. There's sticks over there," he said, inclining his head toward a thicket of dead bushes. "Donatello and Saesha, you will come with me. There's a spring nearby. And Rijinn…watch the kids for me." Ukeera glared daggers at him as he morphed into a griffin. "Hop on, Don." The turtle sighed and jumped back on, straddling Lharom's neck.

He launched into the air, rocketing in the southward direction. In the far distance, Don could see a thick forest. "The northern end of the Wompag," Lharom supplied, wheeling.

"Exactly how many continents are there on Haradris?" Don asked, looking down at a muddy patch of ground.

"Well, let's see…there's Southern and Northern Curulaey—"

"They're kind of like the poles back home," Saesha said.

"—Hseiaey, which is the continent north of this, Fruruwur, never try to say it five times fast, that's the one we're on, Balala, which is an island continent out in the northern ocean, and Zaseiak Isle, another island. In total, I guess there's six." Lharom angled down to land near a rock bed and a bubbling spring.

"How are we going to get all this back?" Don asked, scratching his head.

"Easy. Like this!" Saesha lifted a gallon of water with telekinesis and apparently froze it in a container of a sorts. Then it shrank to the size of a die. She did this ten times until she had a pile of little cubed water containers. "I learned that little trick back in Earth when you guys had that week of training. I got bored and played with water for a while."

"I was wondering what you were doing in the kitchen," Don muttered.

* * *

Gotta go, my head's killing me...Oh, and just thought I'd warn you all...I won't be here starting July 11th. Going on a road trip. And the 14th is my golden birthday. I'lltryto get an update in before then, but I can't make any promises.

LN


	9. The Joy of Prickly Problems

**Disclaimer: **I may be crazy, maybe even evilly loony, but I definitely don't own the TMNT. E and L have probably never even heard of me (save for that art contest thinga ma jig I won and they all signed a book and sent it to me).

A/N: Yup, I did come up with a name for this series. (readers: "Series! (gasp) It's a series?") Yes, dimwits, it is. That should tell you something. (readers: "Ahhh…now I understand…") Chimaera roughly means dream. I thought it fit around the plot lines fairly well, don't you? I mean, dragons are necessarily dreams…figments of our imagination, so to speak. No, it doesn't have anything to do with that ugly three-headed animal creature that has a snake for a tail. (gasp) Wow, I know! I _did _manage to keep my end of the deal and update before I leave! Holy monkey paste, it's the end of the world! Ahem. It's going to get a tiny bit darker around here (you'll know what I mean after you read).

**9.**

Lharom jerked back into wakefulness with a start and growled in a barely heard tone. Something had made a sound; he could bet his claw on it. His keen ears didn't lie. Around him the soft sounds of slumbering forms filled the air. He gritted his teeth when Raph snorted and turned over in his sleep, punching at Don with a closed fist. Don caught the fist and let his shell take the brunt of the blow. The two ceased activity and resumed their snoring. _Jhadie, curse it, I hate first watch! _The moon wasn't helping matters. It cast an eerie white glow on everything, making pikes out of the tiniest grass blades. His leaden eyelids started to droop once more as overwhelming weariness overtook his mind.

Another rustle and a muted crack made him start. This sound was much louder than the first and alarmed him. His hackles went straight up and he growled low and menacingly, hoping it was enough. Another rustle told him it wasn't. The wolfena bared his sharp white teeth and snarled a secondary warning. Two eerie glowing orbs suddenly materialized out of the darkness and he immediately went cold with nameless fear. They were a sickly, bright green, slitted, blinking, looking hungry…and that meant…He sent a panicked telepathic message to Saesha, who abruptly jerked awake and stood on shaky legs.

She bellowed in surprise, her eyes widening entirely, and spat white-hot purple flames at the eyes. The owner hissed softly and sidestepped the attack with liquid ease. Lharom snarled another warning before taking griffin form and throwing a groggy Don onto his back with his beak.

"What…" the turtle started to ask but he could feel the griffin under him radiating a petrifying form of alarm that deadened his nerves. He caught Kyrunir as the rukit was thrown up next and put him in front of him. Raph was already awake by now; the sounds were like thunder to his draconic hearing. He took one look at Saesha, who was putting on the best threat she could muster, and scrambled on hurriedly. Rijinn joined his sister to intimidate the unseen adversary.

Something shot out of the darkness, pale and luminously wet. It curled around Rijinn with lightning speed and recoiled with a pained hiss. The eyes narrowed malevolently. By this time Lharom was loaded with four passengers. "Let's go!" he squawked (or squeaked, if you were Kyrunir and were right by his head), launching in the sky with a powerful leap. One of the luminous things barely missed grabbing his hind leg as he left the ground. Saesha and Rijinn weren't far behind.

"What was that?" Kyrunir whispered, looking back down. But the thing was gone, disappeared from the grass.

Lharom was still trembling through his downy cover and fur. "If the dragons hadn't been there, we would all be dead now." The rukit shivered as a cool breeze went through his fur, chilling him. "I'll tell you later. Right now, we need to get far away from here." The stars above winked coldly at them as they fled the unknown monster they'd narrowly escaped.

When they finally landed it was almost dawn, as the faint beams of sunlight streaming over the horizon attested. Lharom landed heavily, exhausted from flying for so long. He waited until all of his passengers had gotten off, then collapsed, panting.

"What _was _that thing?" Raph demanded with a growl for an undertone.

Lharom's sides were heaving as he spoke. "It…that thing was a…beihl," he grunted.

"A what?" Don asked.

"A beihl!" the griffin exclaimed, his voice cracking. "They're creatures of pure nightmare and are attracted to primarily fear unless they've been called to hunt someone. They're somewhat of a children's horror story." Kyrunir nodded stiffly, as though he knew what Lharom was talking of. "But they're quite real. That one we left was looking for me. No doubt it was enslaved by Xetyphaes to find and kill me." Ukeera shuddered visibly and rubbed her arm. "However, the only way they're repelled is if you have a dragon with you. Dragons are creatures of dreams, which is why there are known only to be good dragons. Originally, dragons were dreamt into existence by an extremely powerful mage who has since then deceased, bless his heart. A dream is the exact opposite of a nightmare."

"So, exactly how does a beihl work?" Saesha mused, pushing Rijinn off of her. He had jumped onto her with a squeak of very non-masculine terror when Lharom mentioned the words 'kill me'.

"The tentacles that it has suck your very life force out of you. Their eyes can paralyze you stiff; the only reason I was able to get away was because I had just enough strength to contact Saesha with a telepathic message. I would have been all but doomed. Among other things, they have the ability to strangle, like the common anaconda. That would have been our fate had we stayed."

"Basically you're tellin' us that unless we're around Saesha or Rijinn, we're fried?" Raph deadpanned, boring a pit in the dirt with his finger and watching small ants detour around it in small lines.

"Yep. But, we are in luck; another weakness is sunlight. They hate it and simply cannot bear it if it contacts with their skin. If it does, I'm told they'll melt."

Saesha rolled her eyes. "Remind you of a certain OZ character?" she grumbled. "And a certain turtle who couldn't stand her shrieks?"

"Yeah, but she melted with water," Don pointed out, smiling slightly.

"And Mikey sounds just as bad as her when he tries to impersonate Shania Twain," Raph added snidely.

"Who?" Kyrunir asked, clearly confused.

"Eh, ya wouldn't understand," Raph said, waving the rukit off.

Lharom stood shakily, testing his limbs to see if they would support him. "We should travel at night only because of circumstances. I suggest we take the daytime to travel easily. But when dusk comes we must fly unless we'd like another run-in with that beihl." He collapsed again and grinned sheepishly, as a best a griffin can. "I seem to be exhausted. Saesha, if I told you where to find some food…"

The purple dragon sighed heavily and stood again. "Alright, where?"

"Well, around an area like this, you'd be able to find some bankas. They should be ripe at this time of year." The griffin raised his huge head, squinting with yellow eagle eyes. "Yep, see some trees over there. But watch for the thorns; they're small and they hurt."

Don grunted, "It had to be thorny fruit trees!" and stood, slipping his Bo in its holster. "I've had just about enough of thorns!" Saesha leapt onto his shoulder as he stalked away through the short, stubby crab grass, rubbing an ear. When he reached the small trees, he spotted oddly shaped pink fruits nestled amongst the prickly branches. The turtle scratched his head and sighed. "How do you suppose we're getting in there without being stabbed?"

"Quit whining," Saesha said, hopping down and landing on the grass with cat-like ease. "At least they're not oljis thorns."

Don frowned and rubbed his arm where a scar from his last encounter dwelled. "And let's hope we'll never run into _them _again." His companion rooted around the base of the tree until she found an opening in the leaves and thorns into which she climbed. The dragon ascended the trunk carefully, avoiding the thorns and nimbly ducking branches.

"I would like to know why, exactly, we're always the ones getting provisions," she grunted casually, ripping off one of the bankas and throwing it to Don with telekinesis. The turtle nodded in agreement and caught another airborne fruit in his hand, putting them both down on the ground so he could catch the others she was pitching. Their shape made them relatively easy to grab; Don always made it his goal to catch the fruits by their curly stems and not their tender, bulbous body. The one time he made the mistake of doing the latter, it exploded, covering his hand in sticky juices. When he had a sizeable pile by his feet, he let Saesha know. The dragon emerged from the fruit tree grumbling and flicking off leaves and thorns stuck in her scales. "No harm done," she replied to the turtle's concerned looks. "I just hate thorns because they needle their way under my scales. It's quite a deal to get them out." To prove her point, she plucked another thorns out with her toes and stabbed it into the ground.

Don bent down to pick up their harvest but found them beginning to levitate right under his beak. He had to jerk back to miss getting bombarded in the face with fruit bombs waiting to be set off. Saesha only smiled malevolently and pounced on his tail, scaling it and his shell to end up on his shoulder. "You could've done it the easy way and jumped," Don muttered.

When they got back to the makeshift campsite, Lharom was still flat on his side, and taking a snooze it appeared. So were Ukeera and Kyrunir. "Claims he needs his sleep to be ready for night flight," Raph grunted, jabbing his thumb at the tawny griffin. "If ya ask me, he's bein' lazy."

"Lay off, Raph. He's bum tired," Rijinn replied from his position nestled between Lharom's large forepaws (A/N: Just to clarify, Haradrian griffins have all lion limbs. The only thing eagley about them is their head and wings.) "It wasn't as if _you _flew three miles last night." The turtle snorted and made a pillow out of his arms as Don sat quietly beside him.

Raph sighed and furrowed his brow. "Donnie, why were we brought here? How did we end up here and not Splinter?"

"The first question I can't answer for you, Raph," Don replied, picking at a blade of grass. "However, I have a theory about the second. It appears that only those of us with any kind of dragon DNA in our system, meaning tails, ears, eyes, were detected by the magical energy in the egg fragment." Saesha settled by his head when he curled up into a ball on the grass.

Rijinn puffed a bit of smoke. "So, what do you wanna do while lion butt over there sleeps his worries and cares away?" he asked. He was greeted with a trio of soft snores. "It always happens to me…" he groaned, settling down for a nap.

* * *

Dakari squinted painfully as the sun's light came in contact with them. Last night had been, simply put, _not _fun. Not by a long shot. They'd been attacked by a fiend from the darkness when they had bedded down for the night. Currently, Leo was resting from the fast and furious melee they had before dawn. He'd been the one who saw the beihl first. 

As the turtle had snuggled into Tunali's stomach for warmth, a tentacle seized the teela by his barrel. The animal was terrified beyond measure, thrashing around in its luminous grip. Leo, furious and fearful, whipped out a sword and slashed the thing in two, dropping his teela on the ground. The teela, now fully aware that they were under attack, squealed and ran behind Leo to hide. The turtle brandished his katanas openly, making sure whatever had grabbed Tunali was aware that he had weaponry.

Another tentacle shot out of the darkness, constricting him around the waist and lifting him up. Dakari leapt in and saved his friend from further harm by smiting the thing with his sword and slicing it through. Leo seemed to be alright for the moment, except for a sudden weariness. Later he'd said he felt his feeling seeping away from every inch of his body and into the tentacle.

Finally, the entire creature emerged, sickly green eyes glowing eerily. It was impossible to look at without feeling an imposing threat blanket your mind, throwing you into paralysis. Watishi charged out of the darkness behind the beihl, bellowing madly in her dash. It missed being trampled by the enraged teela with only inches to spare. Dakari used this distraction to disconnect another of its many arms. It hissed angrily and wrapped the rabbit in two or three tentacles. He _sensed _this thing stealing his life from him as his nerves went numb with cold.

Leo had snapped out of his stupor at just the right time, making a fevered dash at the beihl. Dakari was fading. At the final second, he darted in and stabbed the beihl with both katana, drawing a steady shriek from it. Much to his dismay, as soon as he removed the weapons, the wounds he'd caused healed themselves. The creature was angered by his action and slapped him away with a floppy, yet hard foot. Somehow Tunali managed to catch his tail in his mouth and hurl him back at the beihl.

The turtle, rocketing back to his adversary, slashed off the tentacles that held Dakari, injuring the beihl momentarily. Watishi took her master and spirited him away to the far side of the camp while Leo parried slimy arms and cut them off left and right. It was easy to see the creature was growing impatient and grabbed him by the right foot, swinging him upside down and causing him to drop his swords in surprise. The beihl opened a previously invisible mouth, causing his attention to be drawn to it. He found his gaze held in an unbreakable prison as a long tongue emerged, open and sporting teeth.

Tunali came from behind, rearing up and falling back down to squash the beihl's head with his weighty feet. It dropped Leo again, falling away from the blow. The turtle got up, the mental damage the beihl had dealt now taking its toll. He collapsed onto the pebbly ground like a sack as Tunali dueled with the monster, leaping nimbly away from its grasp only to dart in once again and bite its horrible flesh with sharp front teeth. Had it not been for the sun's timely arrival, they would have died last night.

Now Dakari felt guilty about causing his friend such horrors. He turned around to check on the turtle, who was dozing fitfully, sandwiched between Watishi and Tunali's bellies, his head pillowed on his teela's neck. He sighed and stared at the still steaming, thick, black, gooey puddle on the rocks, the only remnant of the attacking beihl. _What I'd give for Usagi's advice right now, _he sighed inwardly, shifting on the boulder. _It's a wonder I've gotten this far without his help. _

Watishi let out a snort and he turned around again, staring shallowly at her. Her glare seemed to say _Yeah, yeah, get a grip, will you? He didn't die, so stop feeling sorry for yourself, dang rabbit. I should cook you over a fire right now until you get some sense baked into that thick head of yours. _He let his long gray ears droop ever lower and picked an aedil flower from a sparse patch of dirt, staring at the blue and white petals as if he hoped it would suck him into a void.

He heard a groan and his mood spiked toward the cheerful side once more. "Dakari? What're you doing over there?" Leo asked quietly. Clearly from his tone of voice he was still feeling a bot woozy. Tunali and Watishi let out a simultaneous whicker and nuzzled an arm each.

He could nearly hear Watishi reply _Feeling sorry for himself, that's what he's doing. _"Nothing," he said simply, dropping the flower. It floated gently down to the ground before shrinking into a shriveled crust of its former self.

"Dakari-san…what _was _that thing?" Leo asked with a frown. "And what did it want?"

The rabbit got up and walked over to them in short strides. "It was a beihl. And it was hunting me. I've been causing the Empire trouble ever since I arrived here. Xetyphaes must have found a way to enslave one and send it after me. But if he was able to do that…" His eyes widened. "He must've sent one after Lharom!" He growled a curse under his breath and grabbed Watishi's saddle. The teela struggled to her feet clumsily, as her limbs were a bit sleepy from lying down for so long. Leo too staggered upright, balancing with his tail as he bent over to retrieve Tunali's saddle.

"Lharom is one of your buddies I'll guess," Leo said, a shot in the dark really.

"Yes, and a yatined (A/N: Haradrian curse. :) good shape-shifter too," Dakari grunted, strapping Watishi's saddle in place before giving her a pat. "Forgive my language, but circumstances are grim."

The turtle was confused; he had no idea his friend had just cursed, but he shrugged it off. "Er, right. Where are we going?"

The rabbit grinned tightly. "South, to Fruruwur. I won't ask you to repeat that seven times fast," he added to lighten the mood, blue eyes sparkling. Leo chuckled. "He usually can be found around the Wompag forest."

"Right. Does he have particular forms he likes to stay in?" Leo asked, mounting Tunali on wobbly feet. "It might make it easier to find him," he suggested as Dakari clambered onto Watishi. It was rather amusing to see him do it to say the least; the teela was a few inches higher than the top of his head, so he really had to leap for it.

"Griffin, covey, or wolfena, though I doubt he'll be a covey." Leo hid his embarrassment at not knowing what in heaven's name Dakari had just named off. Well, all except for the griffin. "They're too small for his liking, and what he likes is travel." The rabbit pulled out a weathered map to figure out where they needed to go. As he read through the map, Leo pulled out his katana – the one with the turtle pendant on the handle. It sparkled back up at him in the early morning sun. "Well, alright, follow me, Leo!" Dakari stuffed his map back into Watishi's saddlebag before whooping like a cattle herder and causing his teela to jump forward. Leo hurriedly sheathed his katana and gently squeezed Tunali's sides with his knees. He mooed and darted after Watishi, stirring up pebbles in his wake.

About a half hour later, they happened upon a curious scene. They were just passing through a gorge near the south east rim of the Darian mountain range when Leo's sharp eyes spotted a jeering group of…something he couldn't label. They were little, about a foot tall standing on two legs, and yet in such a large mob they could've easily overpowered a lone traveler. And by the looks of it, they had. Cornered was a female tan rukit, snarling like a demon from hell. She didn't look like she could fight with weapons, but by heaven, she could make a mean growl through those incredibly sharp teeth.

Dakari hopped lightly off Watishi, now fully recovered from his guilt trip, and sneaked up behind the nearest imp. Grinning madly, the rabbit dealt it a severe blow with the handle of his katana to the skull and booted it forward. The force of his kick parted the mass of his comrades, throwing the stricken creature into the rocky wall next to the rukit. Of course, they noticed. One squealed and made several opening and closing motions with his mouth, all the while hopping up and down like one whose rear was a-flame. Apparently the leader, he brandished his toothpick of a spear and left about a score of his followers to guard his prey while he and the rest attempted to take Dakari down.

Leo jumped in front of the rukit abruptly, taking an offensive stance while raising his tail in a threatening gesture. An imp to the right made the first move, and it would prove a costly mistake on his part. Since they were so lacking in height, the turtle had to crouch to get a kick into their gut. Naturally, being to short also contributed to their weight mass and he went sailing from a simple side kick. Leo blocked a weak spear thrust while fending off three others from the left with his other sword.

In Dakari's fight, one of the imps had the substance between the ears to blow for reinforcements, which wasn't a good thing for the duo of fighters. "Leo, it's time to go! They are coming with more!" Dakari grunted, sheathing his longer katana and darting to Watishi. The turtle mumbled a sheepish apology to the rukit he was defending before grabbing her around the waist and leaping over the fray of imps. Naturally, she felt a bit violated and fell into stunned silence as Leo dodged pint-sized blows to his legs. He fought the urge to chuckle.

When he reached Tunali, the teela was dancing with the anxious urge to leave the gorge. Leo deposited his bundle on the saddle in front of him before leaping on behind her and 'yah'ing thunderously to Tunali. He leapt forward, kicking away several imps that had tried to hinder their escape. Little did he know, those reinforcements would prove very bad news. Just as they rounded a corner to ascend to the outskirts of the plains, several tiny spears ricocheted off the rocks in front of them. Tunali reared and squealed in surprise, nearly flinging Leo and the rukit off. She was still quiet, but who knows how long that was going to last.

Up front, Dakari was having the same problems, if not worse. The imps he was fenced in by had brought a large wolfena to no doubt devour himself and Watishi. It was lunging against the chains that held it; quite amusing to see, since there were almost thirty imps to a single chain. The rabbit's teela pinned back her ears and snorted a challenge. "You're going to get me killed," he muttered darkly when they released the animal. Yelling in an animalistic tone, he ripped out his katanas and charged at the drooling predator.

The wolfena sidestepped and swatted him on the back when he sprawled past. Her claws scratched his tunic open, revealing the chain mail underneath. Dakari growled and circled around the animal suspiciously. She suddenly darted forward and tackled him to the rocks, pinning him. Her mouth opened slowly, adding to the effect of her terrible breath and sharp teeth. "Nice…breath!" he gasped, straining with her jaws and trying to keep her teeth away from his head.

Leo was playing somewhat of a jousting match behind. Tunali would barrel through the ring and at least one imp would get shish ka bobbed on his sword. But for every one he took out, two would take its place. The rukit was beginning to recover from her stupor and seized one of his swords with soundless request. She slipped off the teela gracefully, still baring her teeth, and slashed skillfully through at least a dozen imps by herself. Leo fought to conceal his surprise and continued to 'joust' with his adversaries.

Watishi saved her master a fatal bite by butting the wolfena away from him. The carnivore hit the wall, getting showered with dust and rocks in the process. She shook her head to clear the stars, panting and pulling up her lips to give more a threat to her presence. "I love you!" Dakari threw his arms around Watishi's neck and kissed her glossy brown cheek shamelessly. She whickered softly and coughed a bit louder than the affectionate gesture, a teela's laugh. "What do you _mean, _I'll never get a wife this way! I've charmed you, haven't I?"

The wolfena charged while they were bantering, nearly taking off his head. Had the rabbit not seen it seconds before and ducked, it would've been bye bye bunny and hello barbecue night. He parried a bite and slashed her muzzle, drawing a stream of blood. He used the distraction to chop off an ear, extracting an agonized howl from the starved animal. She whimpered pitifully, tail between her legs. Dakari raised his eyebrow, clearly asking if she had enough. She whined and licked her bloody nose, backing away into the spear points of her captors. They jabbed at her hocks and jeered to goad her, but she'd had enough. Whirling, she snapped off the head of one of her torturers and loped up the gorge path, crimson dripping from her head.

Now Leo and the rukit stood back to shell, panting. Tunali also had his tail between them as if to ensure he was still in the fight. The only sound was of their breathing and distant, mournful howls made by the retreating wolfena whose butt Dakari had just professionally kicked. Neither he or she spoke to each other but instead used blows to convey their feelings. She attacked swiftly and mercilessly, obviously accustomed to swordplay. Leo was more on the defensive. Then the imps apparently heard something that terrified them. They took on a pathetic countenance before scrambling up the sheer walls of the gorge, leaving Leo and the rukit to pant in peace.

"Well, I'd say that was a lovely little skirmish, wouldn't you?" Dakari remarked wryly, sliding down the slope to the left. Watishi arrived less gracefully, rolling down the incline like a barrel of water. She mooed darkly. "Terrible, you say? _I _thought it was a needed break. Things were getting too strained around here." Another grunt. "Don't you act like a smart aleck to me, you fussy…" She kicked him in the shin, effectively cutting him off in mid sentence. He grimaced and rubbed his stricken limb, sheathing his swords with the other hand.

Leo turned to the rukit. "So, what exactly were you doing out here?" he asked politely enough, taking his sword from her hand. She stared at him, smoldering inwardly. He exchanged glances with Dakari, who shrugged.

"You're just not a ladies' – OW! Cut that out!" Watishi glared at him as he nursed another bruised shinbone, whimpering pitifully.

"It's okay; don't mind him. He's a nutcase. Can you speak at all?" She continued to lock gazes with him, conveying a creepy message with her icy brown eyes. Leo scratched his head. What to do. Mikey had always been the people turtle. Himself? Well, Leo tended to lurk in the shadows and keep to himself when they had guests.

Then his sharp hearing picked up the disturbances of rocks above on the cliff. The rukit looked up, immediately turning stormy. "Fiyesei!" he heard a masculine voice bellow. Dakari apparently knew the meaning of the command and dodged several missiles with yelps. Leo had barely enough wits about him to duck a dart. _Wait…dart? Oh shell…_Tunali reared, squealing in terror as the darts zipped past him, burying themselves in the rocks where Leo had been standing.

The rukit was, apparently enraged, waving her arms like a mad man. "Halawur!" she roared. "Halawur!" There was no halt to the barrage. Dakari, whose energy was spent from wolfena wrestling, soon became oblivious to many of the darts coming his way. Inevitably, he got shot in the neck. He collapsed on the ground, paralyzed and rapidly blacking out.

Leo would've lasted much longer had it not been for the fact that he was the single target now. Two of the missiles embedded in his flesh, one in his shoulder and the other in his thigh. He fought to stay standing, but his muscles complained of overuse and gave out on him. The last thing he heard before traveling to La la land by way of knock out poison was Watishi bellowing her terrible fury.

* * *

When Naicro nudged him to get up, Mike stayed on his plastron. "C'mon, dude, five more minutes," he moaned. The white vern snorted softly and resorted to taking a grip on his tail with his teeth and pulling. "Okay! Ow, ow OW! I'm coming!" The turtle scrambled to his feet, immediately getting blinded by the morning sun. "Oh, yeow. Would it hurt to say, 'The light! It burns!'?" he asked, squinting. 

Aireilei landed nearby. "Be thankful, Mike, we let you sleep in almost an hour and a half," she retorted. "And today we're walking so you can smell the fresh daisies and frolic with butterflies. How's that sound?"

The turtle rubbed his rear. "Yeah, I think my butt will go for that more than another ride on Naicro," he agreed. Mike looked around, seeing only himself, Naicro, and Aireilei. "Hey, where are the others?"

"Finding food, Michelangelo," Naicro replied, sitting down on his haunches.

"Well, why'd you wake me up?" he pouted, throwing his arms in the air. "I could've had another hour!"

Aireilei glared at him. "Because, knowing you, if we let you sleep any longer, you'd feign to stay unconscious when we tried waking you again." Mike grumbled an apology, sitting down. He craned his head to look at the sky, seeing multiple cumulus clouds. After a while, he sighed.

"Is there _anything _I can do besides sit here on my gludious maximus all day?"

"Do you _really _want to know?" the white dragon shot back.

"Uhm, if youkeeplooking at me that way, no."

"Good."

* * *

Okay, forgive me for keeping Mike's segment so terribly short, but my brain's malfunctioning due to excitement for the road trip. I _love _road trips, to be quite frank with you all. And oh dear, the cruelty! I left you to struggle with a dead ringer cliffie for two whole weeks! (grins nervously as Chibi, pacphys, and Ramica slowly start to growl and approach her) And before you ask, I'm going nowhere near Hurricane Dennis, so no worries there. Uhm, I leave tomorrow, which is why I did the update today. No time tomorrow because I have to get ready. So, without further ado, love you all and I'll see you in two weeks! 

LN


	10. Trouble Left and Right!

**Disclaimer: **Hey, don't own 'em, don't get any profit. Capice? Good. Alright, let's get this train wreck a-rollin'!

A/N: I'm back from vacation!

**10.**

"My feet hurt," Mike moaned, collapsing onto the grassy ground. They had been walking all day and due to heat, it was a real drag (literally).

"Will you shut up?" Aireilei growled impatiently. "We're almost there!"

Sor blinked and yawned in boredom. "Where are we going, exactly?" he asked, scratching an ear "We're in the middle of nowhere…and as far as I'm concerned we're _going _nowhere." Naicro lashed his shin with his whip-like tail, sending the gunghir yelping and hopping on one foot.

"You are being disrespectful, Sor Lightblade," he reprimanded, staring him in the face with liquid green eyes. "You will listen to your guide without complaint."

"Easy for you to say, you can take longer steps," Sor retorted snidely, receiving another shin slap. "Ow!"

Kiara sighed in the manner of a mother who has a hard time managing her children and yanked Mike up. "C'mon, it can't be much farther," she encouraged, adjusting her rapiers. "We've been traveling all day."

"Yeah, well it wasn't your achin' butt that got slammed into the dirt," the turtle grunted.

"What are you whining about that for? _You're _the one that fell off," Iwansi pointed out, landing on his shoulder.

"Don't remind me." He involuntarily winced and rubbed his rear.

Aireilei began ascending a steep grassy hill to the right, one that made Mike pant in even more exertion. When she reached the top, she mumbled in a somewhat heartsick way, "I never thought I'd see this again."

"Never thought you'd see wha – Oh wow."

Spread out below them in a wide stretch of green plains and streams were the ruins of what looked like a kingdom or some immense palace. Mossy blocks of stone were strewn all over the place, creating Lego-like pens in the soft soil. Here and there fields dotted the valley, although they looked like they'd been abandoned for quite some time. Surrounding the farmlands and pastures were wooden fences that had long since deteriorated from their former state into rotting sticks. In the distance a beat-up stone structure rose from the land, creating a dismal pyre. Ripped and torn remnants of flags could be seen fluttering atop the three standing towers.

Naicro and Aireilei radiated sorrow as they stared across the wide expanse. "Welcome to Kaernsi, the last remaining piece of the past," the white dragon muttered with a sigh. Kiara bowed her head in reverence as Mike stared.

"Wait. If you guys feel so weepy around this place, why bother coming here?" he asked, scratching his head.

"Because it is a deed that must be done," Naicro said. "My conscience has been in turmoil for as long as I could remember for abandoning the king in his time of desperation. I have been too wary of coming here until now."

"So, coming here's gonna clear your conscience. Funny, the only thing I'm feeling is a sense of serious déjà vu," Mike replied.

"Déjà vu?" Kiara asked, raising her head to look askance at him.

"Yeah, I've been here before, I think." Kiyo appeared as if he was about to reprimand Mikey for pulling their legs until he waved his hands. "Not as in physically, but kinda in a flashbacky, dreamy sorta way. Right before I woke up strung to a pole like one of Spiderman's victims in your camp, actually."

"I can't imagine why you would have a flashback of this place, seeing as how you've never even been to this planet," Aireilei mused.

"Oh yeah. You were in it."

"I…was?"

"Yeah. You remember when we were floating down that river in Japan, completely out cold?"

She smiled. "And Bima and I had to haul you out like fresh-caught tuna? Yes, I do."

"And you remember that campfire story you told us about you and Mr. Pipsqueak-With-Attitude's first meeting?" She nodded warily. "It was during that time. Skewered myself on a few pointy sharp needle things—"

"Those would be lances or pikes," Kiara supplied.

"Before making it to that castle over there," he finished, pointing to the sad excuse for a building.

"That's incredibly odd," Aireilei said, frowning. "The only reason I can think of for you having that dream is that somebody must've sent it to you for an obscure purpose." Mike shrugged.

"Just a 'hey, this happened' spur of the moment thing that needed out. So, we gonna inspect this incredibly hostile plant kingdom that threatens to consume us, or are we gonna sit here and sun ourselves?" The turtle received several stares. "Right! Onward, soldiers!" He dashed down the hill, leaping over railings and whooping like a five year-old.

"Is life no more than a game to that guy?" Sor asked, making his way down at a slower, considerably more dignified pace.

"He can be serious…if you keep all manner of sugary goods away from him," Iwansi commented snidely, galloping after her friend. Naicro went off to the right, no doubt to think for a while. As for Aireilei, she took the time to reminisce on the first time she'd laid eyes on the sprawling farmlands.

_Flashback_

_Fridarus grinned widely at my utter astonishment. "So, how's livin' here lookin' to ya, Aireilei?" he asked with a wink. My emotions were at a standstill; I was speechless at the sight that lay before me._

_Farmers in the fields laughed from behind their plows, whooping at their teelas for encouragement. Stone tool sheds were scattered around the landscape and beside every one was a pile of hay bales. In the distance glittered a castle, decorated with all manner of gleeful decoration. My gape slowly turned into a grin. _

"_Yup, I think yer gonna like it here, my girl!" the crossbred elf said with a melodious laugh._

_End Flashback_

Aireilei slid all the way to the bottom, carefully keeping her balance. She could see Kiyo sniffing around old blocks of stone, his tail a marker signifying where he was."Hey, Aireilei, I think I found something!" he called, waving his tail excitedly.

The white dragon was at his side in seconds. He righted himself, then held up a strange muddy medallion. Aireilei frowned and wiped it in the grass several times before examining it. It was a silver colored engraving of a bow and arrow, surrounded by what looked to be a sash. The whole thing was in stone. She took it in her hand, savoring the touch of it. "Kiyo, you just found what used to be the symbol for a master archer. Somebody must've dropped it when they got killed five hundred years ago."

Kiyo wrinkled his nose. "What do you suppose these piles of stone blocks were before they got torn to pieces?" he asked, digging around under one. A small lizard-like animal darted out from under it, causing Kiyo to jump back in surprise and run into another block.

"People's houses, tool sheds, barns… We found uses for rock in every way."

"Hmm…what did you grow here?" he asked, sniffing for the offending lizard.

She smiled, remembering the bountiful feasts Fridarus would always throw just to get enough food to fill his gut and others'. "Bankas, ruyens…heck, the poultry around here was famous for having stuffing already in their bellies! What the farmers would do was…" She proceeded to tell him the secrets of 'poultry stuffing without having to stick your hand up its butt'.

"Sounds like it was fun," Kiyo said delicately, not knowing if that would be a good or bad statement. He threw aside the block he was searching under and pounced on the lizard that had caused him so much grief. It slipped out of his paws and jumped into a burrow just as Kiyo smashed headfirst into the entrance.

"After the archers got used to me shooting with them, it wasn't so bad. Sure, they still thought of me as an animal for years after, but I shut them right up with spurts of magic." She was unaware that her little brother had his head stuck in a burrow and was currently growling fervent curses out, trying to pry his head free.

_Flashback_

"_Aw, come on, Fridarus! She's an animal! A yatined animal! How do you expect her to even know how to _use_ a bow?" the weapons master yelled. I was stung. I wasn't an animal! I could think for myself and you're smoking something if you even think I'll refrain from punching you into the dung piles next to the stable._

_I gritted my teeth as my protector slid an arm around my shoulders. "Look, Aruse, she can shoot just as good as any of _your_ archers. Just let her give it a shot," he growled. I looked up at him. He returned my skeptical gaze with a wink and reassuring smile. "Literally," Fridarus said, laughing at his own joke._

"_You're going to make a fool of yourself, Highness, but alright, if that's what ya want," the rukit grumbled, stalking off toward the bows._

"_Oh, and Aruse, if it makes any difference, I'd like her to pick her own."_

_He snorted as I stepped forward. "Hmph. She'll probably just take it and start gnawing on it." I felt extremely compelled to throw him against the wall with wind, turn invisible, and sock him where it counted. Still, I managed to keep my temper in check, trotting to the pile of bow handles._

_I glared at him as I picked up a stringless bow. "It might help if I had a string," I pointed out._

"_Yeah, sure, whatever, kid." He handed me the desired item, watching me string the bow with interest. I twanged it a few times, pulling it back to my cheek experimentally. _

"_This'll do just fine, sir," I said politely to Aruse, a small smile playing on my face. He had absolutely no idea what he was in for._

_Fridarus grinned. "Shall we get going to the target practice fields then, my dear?" he asked, taking my hand. And in no more than a blink of an eye, I found myself standing fifty feet from my enemy, a straw-filled, red and white target. I glared at it. _You are my enemy. My objective is to kill you by sticking an arrow in your chest. _I envisioned the person screaming for mercy as I nocked an arrow._

"_Back away guys, she's gonna miss," somebody warned._

"_Watch me," I snarled under my breath, loosing the arrow. It sailed, whistling, toward the target and impacted with a hollow crack. I heard several collective gasps._

"_Holy…"_

"_Beginner's luck," a veteran snorted. "Let's see you do that again, dragon." Before he even finished the sentence, I stuck the target in the exact same spot with another arrow, splitting the first I'd shot into the bull's eye._

"_Wow…jhadie…she's better than you, Haruke!" A rukit male, whom I assumed was Haruke, advanced on me._

"Nobody_ can get three bulls eyes in a row."_

"_You willing to bet on that?" I retorted, nocking a third arrow. _

"_Oooh, I'm scared stiff," he sneered. I glared icily at him, nocking two more._

"_Alright, we'll do three arrows, mister smartie pants. And when you lose, you'd better apologize."_

"_Apologize? To a _female_? Far as I'm concerned, females ain't good for much of anythin' except cleaning the house and reproducing."_

_I growled a warning and puffed some smoke. "Watch it, Haruke. You don't want me angry."_

"_Oh? And what'll you do? Shoot flowers at me?" My spinal region burst into ruby flames as I let my anger smolder._

"_Shut up," I snarled, whirling and releasing my arrows. He cried out suddenly and tried to leap away, but for some reason found himself unable to move his boots. They had been nailed into the dirt by my arrows. I snorted, blew him over with wind, and stalked off._

_End Flashback_

"Sounds like you gave them plenty of reasons for them to treat you as a sentient being at the tender age of eight," his muffled voice came out. The green dragon's wings flapped in exasperation as he continued trying to free his head from the lizard burrow. Aireilei noticed his predicament and grabbed his midsection, yanking him free. "My horns got caught on a root," he panted.

She shrugged and put him down. "Strangest part is, Haruke became one of my closest companions. He was always challenging me to a friendly match, even though he knew he'd lose." The white dragon shook her head ruefully. "Ah, but sword duels? That he was good at. I was victor only once. I won by a stroke of pure luck when he fell and sprained his ankle."

The little green dragon patted her thigh. "It must've been hard when he died." He then proceeded to roll his face in the grass to clean it of dirt.

"Not as hard as losing my mother to Xetyphaes," she growled, clenching her fist. "He makes me sick."

"Apparently I hit a nerve." Kiyo smiled understandingly. "Let's try a different subject, okay?" She nodded. "How about…over there?" He pointed with his tail to a flat stretch of ground near the west wall of the castle.

"That's the archery field."

He raised an eyebrow. "Shall we see if the legendary dragoness still retains her touch?" he challenged, galloping away toward it. Aireilei launched into the sky, lazily following him. It felt so much like she was returning to home. When she landed, Kiyo had already set up a stump at the far end. "Alright! Get an arrow smack dab in the middle!" he shouted, stepping aside. The white dragon summoned her bow and quiver from thin air, nocked an arrow, and fired. It split the stump in dead center. Kiyo whistled in surprise and clapped appreciatively (A/N: Well, as good as dragons _can _clap.).

Aireilei looked around. "Where are Mikey, Sor, and Kiara?"

"I think they went with Iwansi to check out the castle. Mind going over there to see?"

"Sure."

"Okay, now _that's _creepy," Mikey declared fervently, pointing to a gothic style painting. The gargoyle in it stared back at him with red eyes.

Kiara put down an intricate vase she'd been studying. "It's called art, Mikey."

"_My _idea of art is a pan of hot lasagna." His voice echoed high above the rotting rafters of the main hall. Sor mouthed the question, 'What's lasagna?' and Kiara shrugged.

"It doesn't seem like anything important's been left here," Iwansi muttered, climbing down the wall and falling into a pot when she lost her grip. "I've already checked the rooms around here." She clambered out of the pot and shook herself vigorously. "All I've found are a couple of beat up bed frames and this." The yellow dragon held up a glittering ring.

Mike grinned slowly. "Hey, if you ever get married…" Iwansi kicked him and gave it to Kiara to examine. She turned it over and around in the light for a few moments, then grunted, "I have no clue what this is."

Sor took it from her hand. "Well, I bet Aireilei would know. Where is she anyway?"

"Right here." The gunghir nearly jumped out of his skin when the white dragon abruptly materialized out of the shadows. "What? I remembered a secret passage I used to play in when I was off duty around ten years old," she defended, taking the ring. She widened her eyes, looking very much like she received a bullet to the stomach. "Where in the blazes did you find this?" They stared at each other. "I asked you a question!"

Iwansi held up her forepaws. "Alright, alright! Sheesh, don't get yer undies in a bunch. This way." She trotted up to a door that had been torn nearly off its hinges and carefully pushed it open, prompting an eerie creak from the old thing. Dust showered down on the little yellow dragon. "My gosh, doesn't anybody dust around here?" she ranted, giving a sneeze and stumbling through the doorway. Aireilei treaded carefully on the ancient carpet, peering inside the hallway that Iwansi had disappeared into. She saw the dragon's yellow tail vanish around a corner to the left.

The white dragon sniffed the air uneasily. It had suddenly become a little harder to breathe in the musty atmosphere. Maybe it was just her, but she was beginning to get a bit hot. _Yeah. Or maybe I've finally hit puberty after a millennia, _she teased herself, making her way down the hall. She took a left turn, nearly falling through a gaping hole in the floor. Apparently the wooden supports had given out on this section. Aireilei hopped nimbly across it, momentum carrying her slightly farther than she would have liked. The result was her knocking over and breaking a piece of what would have been expensive pottery had it been five hundred years prior to the event.

"Geez, you're making a racket back there!" Iwansi growled, peering around another corner. "Will you hurry it up? It's getting uncomfortable in here." Aireilei grinned, pleased to find out that she _hadn't _after all met her time.

"Nope, that was nine hundred eighty-seven years ago," she corrected herself. By the time she reached Iwansi's location, she had nearly fallen down another hole, saved a vase from the fate the first suffered, and broken down the wrong door, releasing the sour smell of a pantry that had seen better days.

"If I were an orc, I'd have you run through with a lance by now," the yellow dragon grunted as Aireilei entered the room after her perilous ordeal. She shrugged and suddenly gasped, looking at the ring and the room simultaneously.

"By the Claw, I'd forgotten where the king's chambers were!"

Iwansi raised her visible eye ridge as Aireilei rushed around in excitement. "These are the king's chambers?" she asked, thoroughly unimpressed. "What kind of royalty can live in a shack like this?" The yellow dragon snorted, seeing she wasn't going to get an intelligible response from her ecstatic elder sister, and walked around to investigate the many items.

The wooden items such as the closet, bed frame, heck, even the door frame, were all rotted and could probably have fallen apart from a single touch. Iwansi tested her theory by poking a bed frame leg and found it to be true when the small amount of force put behind the push caused the entire structure to creak for a moment, then collapse in a glorious medley of crashes.

Kiara came running through the doorway. "What are you two doing?" she inquired, Sor bumping into her from the sudden stop she made. From behind Sor came the unmistakable sound of Mikey's complaint that he was going to die from hunger. "What are _you _doing for that matter, Aireilei?" The question was spouted because the white humanoid reptile was bustling around a corner, tugging down tapestry poles and the like in a frenzy.

She turned around in a huff, clearly searching for something. "I'm trying to find the entrance!" she exclaimed hurriedly, and resumed pushing around the stones in the wall and scratching at mortar.

"To what?" the rukit prodded, puzzled.

"The…entrance!" the dragon puffed impatiently once more, scurrying to a different side. "Look, don't ask me why! I remember there's a hidden door leading to…_something _in here! And this ring Iwansi found is the key to opening it! So if I could just find the…"

"Slot?" Kiyo finished, pointing to a strange indent in a stone block. It was circular and looked as though something fit neatly inside it. "I found it behind the headboard of the bed. Since Iwansi sorta…well, destroyed the thing, it was kinda hard not to see it." Aireilei grinned jubilantly, zipping to the aforementioned slot in a blur of pearl. She took a moment to examine the piece of jewelry in her hand before sticking it into its place. Nothing happened for a moment, then an almighty rumble that shook the floor like an earthquake. Dust and pieces of wood showered them from above as the shaking stopped. When the dust settled, there was a huge opening in the wall, revealing a black passage.

"I'd say we'll need a torch," Sor grunted.

Mike squeaked and backpedaled a bit. "Hold it, no way am I going in there!" he declared. Iwansi stared, exasperated, at him.

Aireilei stuck her head in the foreboding tunnel. "No need for torches, guys; they're already here!" And with that, she spat a ball of white fire down the length of it, igniting several ready torches and shedding light on the floor. The turtle plastered to the wall gulped audibly as the three dragons and a rukit began down the subterranean passageway. Sor cleared his throat impatiently. When Mikey didn't move, he leaned forward and grabbed him by the arm, dragging the protesting reptile into the tunnel and around the corner.

Aireilei had already reached a dead end. "Now, what in blazes am I supposed to do here?" she growled, punching the wall.

"Answer a few riddles, stupid." The dragon nearly jumped out of her skin at the sudden voice.

"I guess you made an invisible friend," Iwansi commented snidely.

"Alright, whoever said that, shut up," the voice grunted. "I'm being serious here. Now if you'd be so kind as to listen to me and quit blabbering your idiot mouths off…"

"He's got an attitude too."

"I'm going to ignore that, impudent imp. First riddle's this: 'What has a neck but no head?'"

Aireilei scratched her head. "Um…that's a hard one. Howz about a hint?"

"No dice, what's-your-name. I can't do that. It ain't in the rules." Kiyo rolled his eyes just as Kiara caught up with them.

"What are you guys doing staring at this wall?" she asked.

"Trying to answer my riddles. Now shush. The poor morons are trying to think here." Aireilei glared at the stone wall.

"What's the riddle?"

"I hate repeating stuff. 'What has a neck but no head?'"

Kiara smiled. "Easy! A bottle."

"One point for the smart rukit, morons zero." Sor and Mikey arrived seconds after the reply. "How many of you _are _there?" the voice asked crossly. "Because if just one more of you come in here, I've been had."

Kiyo scratched the wall. "Just give us the next riddle already," he said.

"Alright, you impatient twirp. 'What never gets any wetter no matter how hard it rains?'"

"Well, it should be something wet already, so that leaves us with some body of water," Kiara mused. She suddenly snapped her fingers. "Got it! The ocean!"

There was a slight delay in the snappy voice's reply this time. "Are the rest of you brainless?" it asked. "The last time I checked, the only stupid people on this planet were males." Kiara giggled as Mike uttered an indignant sound. "I need to get harder riddles…This one should stump you. 'What do people make that nobody can ever see?'"

Mikey hemmed and hawed. "Man, if Donny were here, he'd have this down in squat seconds!" he grumbled, scratching his head. "Um…can't be anything of the waste product type…"

"MIKEY!" Aireilei shouted.

He grinned sheepishly. "Okay…um, wait! Shout again, Aireilei!" She was puzzled, but did so. "That's it! Noise!"

"It's nice to know not all of you are idiots," the voice still insultingly commended. "Enter at will." Several stones dislodged from the wall, nearly squashing Iwansi's toes. The dragon glared at the voice wherever it was, and pulled them aside. "Okay, you people, now, if you wanna know what's inside there, trust me, it ain't me. I got nixed a long time ago. And if you really wanna go in there, you'll need that ring you used to get in here."

"Gee, thanks," Sor said dryly.

"My pleasure. Now, if you're not gonna do anything, beat it. I've got more boredom to waste." Aireilei stepped forward and thrust her hands into the space, pulling the rocks apart with mighty force. She ripped it down and spat more fire at a torch to light it. "Oh, and one more thing. Look up." They all simultaneously raised their gazes to the ceiling. "See that purple gem?" They nodded as one. "Somebody smack it as hard as you can." Mikey took out a nunchaku, jumped up, and whacked the end against the gem. The faint light from within died a bit, then flared brighter. "One more time sonny." He cracked his weapons on it again, shattering it to pieces. A spectral form slowly materialized from the remains and stretched with a happy sound. "Ah, to be free! Thanks a bunch! For a troop of idiots, you're not half bad." It ran through the wall abruptly, leaving the confused travelers to figure out for themselves what just happened.

"What was that?"

Aireilei was gaping. "I have no clue," she said, emphasizing each syllable separately.

Iwansi blew some hair out of her left eye. "Well, who's going down the creepy tunnel first?"

"YOU ARE!" everybody bellowed.

The dragon grumbled, "Me'n my big mouth," before trotting down the passageway. It was a while before they heard anything from her. "Hey guys! I found something!" she yelled. They all stampeded down after her, finding her standing before a door. "I can't break it down. Anybody care to help?" Aireilei rammed the door, only succeeding in making her shoulder ache.

"Trust me when I say that thing isn't gonna budge," Mikey advised, smiling slightly.

"That spirit thingie said we needed the ring, right?" Sor asked, standing a bit straighter. "Hold on a minute, I'll be right back!" He dashed around the corner in a flurry of wings. Aireilei looked at Mike and shrugged, proceeding to pound the snot out of the thick slab of wood. Despite her attempts to break it, force it open, or do anything else, it didn't give. Nor did it hint on giving. Just then, Sor returned. "Aw, dang it, I can't find the stupid thing, Aireilei!" he cried, grabbing his head in his wings. "I thought it would still be in the door, but it's not! Argh!"

Iwansi looked at the door. "Guess we won't find out what's behind curtain number one anytime soon," she muttered, turning around to go back. Once they had all gotten out, Aireilei started feeling strange. The room began spinning in circles and she was hard pressed to keep her balance.

"Rei? You okay?" she vaguely heard Mikey ask. Someone caught her as she fell down.

"What's wrong with her? Why'd she pass out?" Sor inquired, puzzled.

Mikey shrugged. "Too much beer? Ow!" Iwansi had clawed him in the leg.

Suddenly and abruptly, the roof was ripped off with an almighty roar. "I might know the answer to that question, gunghir rebel," a sinister, yet squeaky voice cackled.

* * *

What finally woke Rijinn up from his nap was the sensation of having a wet muzzle. He opened his eyes and blinked groggily. A single water droplet sat there quivering on one of his nostrils. The red dragon wrinkled his nose and tried snorting it off to no avail. Something thundered up above, causing him to look up. Directly overhead were angry dark clouds that looked like they were fully prepared to zap slash crispy fry any dragon, turtle, or rukit with a lightning bolt. 

He leapt up with a yelp. The red dragon darted franticly to Lharom and pounced on his muzzle, waking the wolfena up in a jiffy. "For cryin' out loud, pipsqueak, do ya gotta stab my poor maw with those claws of yours?" he growled, shaking Rijinn off. "A guy can't hardly get any…oh jhadie." He was on his feet immediately, staring at the storm clouds. Then the wolfena turned around. "Well well well! That storm from about two hours ago has caught up with us!" he commented as a gale ruffled his fur.

Several fat raindrops spattered his face, causing the canine to snort and sneeze franticly while trying to clear his snout of water. Rijinn, knowing an emergency when he saw one, leapt onto Don's plastron, using it as a springboard, and landed claws first right on Kyrunir's rear. The rukit jerked wide awake with a surprised squeak, flinging the dragon off his posterior. Rijinn landed on Raph, which set off a chain reaction. Raph bellowed and jumped up, Sais in hands, sending the red dragon airborne once more. The squealing little winged reptile landed on Saesha's tail, making her jump at least four feet up and bowl into Ukeera, who clawed with her hands at the assailant she couldn't see. On of her flailing hind legs connected with Don's rear, sending him forward a few inches and snapping him out of sleep.

"Will you all just shut up?" Lharom bellowed after five minutes of confusion. All activity froze. "Cripes, you people are the most excitable I've met!" he panted. "Now let's all just calm down and figger what just happened! Who started this?" Rijinn grinned sheepishly from underneath Kyrunir and Ukeera, who had run into each other. "I declare, when I say 'caught up with us' I don't mean right on us, ya silly dragon! Now, can we get moving before somebody ends up getting torched by lightning?" Raph jabbed his Sais back into his belt and glared at Rijinn.

"What?" he asked, wriggling out of the rukit pile he had been under.

Saesha pawed Don's leg anxiously, staring at something behind him. "Would it be stealing a line to say 'Auntie Em! It's a twister!'?" She took off like a shot as the turtle in purple turned around to went slack-jawed. A huge, whirling tornado was steadily making its way toward the group!

"Wait for me!" he yelled franticly, dashing after the dragon. Lharom grabbed Ukeera in his teeth by the scruff of her neck as Kyrunir scrambled onto his back. Raph took one look at the funnel on swirling branches, leaves, and grass and went running after Don and Saesha like his rear was on fire. The wolfena behind him darted headlong in a steady lope, easily catching up to the turtle and passing him as Rijinn leapt onto Raph's shell, holding on for dear life.

The wind roared in their ears, blowing them back and slowing their progress. The grass snapped like whips on Lharom's legs, making faint red welts. "What are we gonna do? That thing's gonna get us!" Raph bellowed, grabbing a root to avoid being pulled off the soil.

Lharom braced against the gales, his fur blowing everywhere. "We need to find shelter! Otherwise, you can make that blender your clingy new friend!" he barked.

Don looked like he was thinking. "Well, I can see a couple of caves to the north!" the purple turtle called, blinking dust out of his eyes. Lharom turned his head in the aforementioned direction.

"That will lead us past the twister! Are you sure about that?"

"Trust me! The direction the wind is going can help us move! We need to go with the wind, not fight it!" Don stood, hunched, beginning to walk forward at a slow shuffle. His bandanna tails were going in front of him now. It finally dawned on Lharom that the crazy wind currents could be of some use after all. The turtle slid a little toward the tornado and worked his way back to the imaginary line he was following, going with the flow of air as it pushed and pulled.

His eyes began to water from the constant blinking he had to do. Don couldn't hear anything except the roar of the twister that was steadily gaining on him. When he was about ten feet from one of the caves, he jumped for it, disappearing down the hole and barely missing getting his head smashed on the low upper lip. Lharom drove his legs down into the dirt with each step, finding it harder to walk with the wind than fight it. Raph and Rijinn moved past him, vanishing into the cave like wraiths. He threw Ukeera into the cave, followed by Kyrunir, and then found himself unable to get in due to his size. He shrank into a covey, nearly getting blown away as he hooked his claws on the rim. Muscles screaming, he hauled himself into the hole. Without the wind pulling on him, he fell forward, sliding down a steep slope of gravel.

His world spun in dusty circles, giving him a headache and making him sick. When he thought he couldn't take any more of it, he hit a hard shell. "Yeow!" he cried as his rear sent him a message that said 'pain'. Similar moans came from underneath Raph's bulk.

"And I thought…Mikey's pizza topping choices…were the only things that made me sick," Raph groaned, rolling off Ukeera and hitting the floor.

"Ow. Whose idea was this?"

"Not mine," Ukeera grunted, prying Rijinn off her tail.

"Hey, you could've been twirled around in a tornado," Don said, coughing. "And that would've been much worse."

"Ya ever been in a twister, Donnie?"

He hacked some more dust. "No."

When Lharom finally felt healthy enough to trust his limbs for movement, he stood up and leapt nimbly off. Much to his chagrin, he collapsed on impact with the floor. "Nice landing," Saesha commented, her eyes glowing an eerie lavender. He growled and sighed.

"Well, looks like we're in a real pickle now, guys," the covey groaned. "For one, it's pitch black. Two, that slope is so steep and shaky we'll never get back up it. And three…"

"And three?"

"Three, I don't know where the heck we are."

"Duh," Raph deadpanned. "Like anybody knows where they are in the dark." A red light flared in the corner, blinding them all for a moment. "Oops. Guess I forgot we have the Living Candle over there."

Rijinn snorted. "Hey!" Don stood and abruptly bumped his head.

"Looks like we'll have to crawl," he said, wincing and rubbing his noggin. The red dragon trotted off, his light fading for a moment.

"Uh, guys?" he called, his voice sounding unexpectedly timid as it echoed off the walls. "This is a dead end." Saesha galloped to him, skidding to a halt beside a stalagmite and closing her eyes in deep concentration. All that could be heard were the labored breaths of the trapped travelers by the entrance.

"No, it isn't," she finally said, walking nonchalantly to a wall. She reared and tapped a claw against it. A soft plop sounded from the other side. "This wall is relatively thin. It could be broken through. Stand back, Rijinn." She backed away a few feet, glowing with her telekinesis. Then, Saesha charged. Don, Raph, Kyrunir, Ukeera, and Lharom involuntarily cringed when she connected with the wall. Surprisingly, she bowled right through it, creating a small hole. Dust and small rocks fell from the ceiling as the group tensed. It stopped as suddenly as it had begun.

Rijinn peered through the punctured rock. "Sis? You okay?" He heard some distant grunts.

The sound of shifting dust and rocks. "I'm alright," she growled. "But there was a small chasm on the other side. And with my luck, I fell right down it."

"Well, can't you fly out?"

"I can't very well fly when I'm buried under a foot of rubble."

"Oh." Rijinn prepared to drop from his window. "I'm coming down, sis!" He heard grumbles about being nicknamed as he hopped out of the hole and started falling. There's just one bad thing about darkness: experts say you can't see anything unless you have a light. And by golly, they're right. Rijinn flared his wings abruptly to keep from becoming a flattened pancake on a ledge that had popped out of nowhere.

"Took you long enough," Saesha grunted. "Now get me out of this." The red dragon snorted.

"Well, who died and made you mother?"

"Just dig already!"

"Bad-tempered little…" Just the same, he landed on the ledge to help her. When the light from his fire revealed her position, he had to keep from laughing. All that could be seen of his sister were her two front paws, her head, and her right hind leg (A/N: That's kind of what my dad looked like when he went to float in the Great Salt Lake.). "If you knew just how ridiculous you looked…" She growled a warning and started to glow. "Alright, alright! Sheesh…" Rijinn plunged a paw into the dirt and rocks, pulling a fist sized rock out. It tumbled down the rubble hill and clattered off the ledge. After a five second wait, they heard a soft splash. "Guess that means if you handed oh so _gracefully _landed here, you would've been a dragon smoothie," Rijinn remarked evilly.

"You want me to pull a Darth Vader on you?" Saesha snarled, beginning to glow again.

"Oh, yeah. Like you could pull off the whole 'I find your lack of faith disturbing, commander' line, _with _the 'shhhh ko' gasping."

"You've watched too much Star Wars with Mikey."

Rijinn grinned, his flames flaring a bit. "I pride myself in knowing the lines." He resumed shoveling dirt off the purple dragon, hearing the showers of rubble hit the water with distinguishable splashes. When he discovered one of her wings, he poked it experimentally. She yelled, apparently in pain.

"Don't touch that, Rijinn!" she hissed.

He inspected it carefully. "I may be no doctor, but it doesn't take a moron to know that your wing's sprained."

"Hey guys! You okay down there?" Kyrunir called.

"Peachy! We'll be up there in a sec!" Rijinn replied loudly, unearthing Saesha's neck. "'Kay, you can get up now. But be careful not to move that wing too much. We'll have to get that fixed somehow."

"I've not doubt that Donnie'll know what to do," she grunted, standing up. "So, how do you figure we're going to get back up?" Rijinn launched into the air.

"Grab my paws," he instructed, holding out his forepaws. She reared and grasped them.

"If I fall, I'm taking you with me," she warned.

"Don't I know it." The red dragon stretched his wings to the maximum before flapping down hard. He moved vertically about five inches before having to flap again. When they finally reached the side of the chasm opposite to the hole, he was exhausted. "I hope…you're happy," he gasped, gulping deep breaths of musty air as he collapsed.

"Rijinn? We need light over here," Don said. "Kyrunir and Ukeera aren't going to cross unless they can see where they're stepping."

"And you?"

"Raph and I are fine. We're ninjas, remember?"

Rijinn sighed. "Yeah, sure. Leave it to the smart one to make me feel stupid." He got up on shaky legs and trotted over to the edge of the chasm. Seconds later, Kyrunir came leaping out through the darkness, landing practically on his face. "Trust me when I say that wasn't the least bit graceful," the red dragon said with a grin.

Kyrunir was shivering. "I _hate _jumping over wide spaces like that."

"Oh, Ky, you're such a WIIIIMP! _EEEEK_!" Ukeera flew from the window, clutching her head as she cannonballed into the floor, shaking. "Don't _throw me_!" she practically roared.

"Hey, it was either that, or ya fall," Raph retorted, landing nimbly beside her. He received a punch in the shin that made him wince. "Remind me to never again deal with a hysteric female."

Don sprawled onto the ground, receiving several inquiring stares. "He kicked me over here," the turtle answered, jabbing his thumb back. Lharom, in mutant turtle form, landed on the rock ground in a rolling tackle.

"Show-off." The mage shifted into a covey again, winking at Raph. "Can we _please_ get moving now? I've gotta feeling that if I'm in here for much longer, I'm gonna become another Gollum."

Rijinn flared his flames once more and started trotting toward a faint blue light. "Hey, what's that?" The red dragon slid down a slope of rock and disappeared into a hole in the wall, cutting off the glow for a brief second. "Oh, _wow_," he breathed. "Check this out!" Don dove into the tunnel, emerging out the other side only to be slightly blinded by blue.

They were in a huge, spacious cavern full of stalagmites and stalactites. That in itself was interesting, but the main thing was an enormous transparent crystal sitting directly in the center of the cave. As Don advanced on it, he could see a pale yellow form inside the rock. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be a wingless dragon about fifteen feet in length from nose to tail.

"What's it doing in there?" Don wondered, putting a hand on the crystal's surface.

Rijinn shrugged. "Dunno. But from the looks of it, she's been in there a very long time."

"She? How do you know it's a she?"

He looked quizzical. "I have no clue. Just sorta came to me."

They were still standing there when Raph ran up to them in a panic. "Guys, we've gotta get outta here!" he said. They stared at him. "Look, I dunno how it got in here, but there's a beihl right around the corner!" Rijinn squealed, all his control gone, and dashed to the other side of the cave, searching franticly for an exit.

Don saw Lharom, Kyrunir, and Ukeera pop out of the tunnel, followed by a slimy green tentacle of immense proportions.

"Bad news, guys," Rijinn announced. "There's no way out."

* * *

Angry voices penetrated the drugged fog of his sleep. He tried struggling out of it, but for the moment, his mind was still groggy and confused. Something slapped him in the face, producing a sting that helped clear some of the blackness – and it _hurt _too! Leo grimaced and shook his head, trying to make his blurry vision focus. Nope. No dice. All he saw were blobs that talked…and swore, evidently. The turtle saw a growing copper blob rocket toward his face a little too late and received a punch in the beak that made him yelp. That cleared the rest of the drug from his mind, but now he wasn't so sure if he was even on a planet anymore. 

For one thing, everybody was upside down. Rukits gathered around him were speaking a different language. And he had just enough sense left in his throbbing cranium to move aside when another punch headed for his face. It hit something hard and the owner cursed like a madman.

"Leo! Are you alright?"

It took him about a minute to register the voice and match a name to it. "Dakari?" he grunted, slapping away a different fist with his tail. "What's going on? And why am I getting clocked in the face?"

He heard the rabbit utter a fervent, 'Ouch!' and assumed that he had also been hit. The copper rukit who had been the first he saw to visually hit him approached Leo venomously.

Somebody rushed out of the crowd of spectators, clearly ready to rip Mr. Copper's head right off. "Laseiwur wurhseiti pru. _Nruse,_" she growled, standing toe to toe with Mr. Copper. Leo blinked. The girl was the one that he and Dakari had rescued right before being knocked out by darts. So if they were hanging by their feet from a pole, why wasn't she?

"I wurrutiey phrruer wurru pru hrulasei," Mr. Copper snarled right back, backhanding her across the face.

She righted herself, glaring acidly at him. "I seilala nruwur leseivsei wurhseila hseiyesei wurru kaerffseiye fruye a eyseiseiey wurhseiphr eyiey nruwur eyru!" The tan rukit narrowed her eyes rebelliously at him as the crowd gasped. (A/N: You are all getting lost at this point, so I'll take the liberty of translating this load of hooey.) (I will not leave them here to suffer for a deed they did not do!)

"Pru hrulasei bseifruyesei I eyru karulaseiwurhinp I seilala yeseipyeseiwur," he commanded blackly, grabbing her roughly by the shoulders. (Go home before I do something I will regret.)

She wrenched out of his grasp and stared icily at him. "Phrruer alayeseiaeyphr havsei," she said. (You already have.) With that, she whirled and bowled through the crowd.

He heard Dakari whistle. "That's tough luck, buddy," he muttered. Mr. Copper, turned, his eyes shining with wrath. Lightning fast, he snatched a spear from a companion and threw it at the rabbit. His cry of pain didn't go unnoticed by Leo, who struggled uselessly in his bonds. "Yeow! If you've got a medical degree for this stuff, pal, I'd like to see it!"

Mr. Copper strode over to the samurai and yanked his spear out of something Leo couldn't identify because his peripheral vision wasn't working too well. Then the rukit did something Leo knew instinctively that he should stop. He raised the spear and prepared to drive it through Dakari's head. Just as he was gearing up for it, the turtle reached out with his tail, wrapped it around the spear, pulled it away from Mr. Copper, and pitched it over the crowd, a yell testifying that it had definitely hit somebody.

Leo smiled nervously when the rukit looked at him, obviously fuming. "Um, hi?" he ventured. The response was another flying spear. As he prepared to smack it away with his tail, something else interfered on his behalf. A flash of tawny gold and white leapt in front of the trajectory, catching it in mid air. The snapped shaft fell to the ground with a clatter.

"Quit this nonsense, Rames," it growled, sitting down on its haunches. Even though he was upside down, Leo could still identify the thing's features relatively well. Its whole body was a blinding shade of titanium white that looked like not a hair was out of place. Encircling its neck and running down its spine was a mane of golden fur that made it look like a lion. It was just about the size of one too, standing head at Leo's shoulder.

"Pseiwur ruerwur ruf tiphr vilalapsei, Shahkar," Rames rumbled murderously. (Get out of my village, Shahkar.)

"No!" Shahkar shot back. "_You_ get out of thisvillage! These people have no need for your madness to go and infect their peace-loving ways. If I were you, I would stop polluting their minds with stories and tales and whatever stranger comes within a half a mile radius of your _village_," he spat," should be killed because they could be enemies seeking you out." Dakari gulped.

Rames picked up his shattered spear, still glowering. "Wurhseiphr weseirusei pruinp wurru yeazasei tiphr piyela," he snarled. (They were going to rape my girl!) Dakari gasped out of indignation. Leo didn't, as he didn't understand a word the copper colored rukit had said.

Shahkar bared his teeth. "Is that really what you believe?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. "Have you really consulted your daughter on this, chief? I think not!"

"Hoo boy…" Leo heard Dakari mutter.

"Let them go now, Rames. You are making a substantial mistake."

"Pru bacudi wurru phrruerye zaacudi, flaseia biwurwursein kaseiyeerlaaf," Rames growled dangerously. (Go back to your pack, flea bitten serulaf.)

"I refuse," Shahkar countered. "Have you enough sense about you to know that one of these two is chosen of Hiph for a purpose? If I indeed leave, then the only chance this broken world has of pulling itself back together will be lost to your idiocy."

"Hsei ai nruwur cuhrukasein, hsei ai a eyseitirun!" (He is not chosen, he is a demon!)

The serulaf pounced on Rames abruptly, ending his spout of incoherent elvish. "Would you like me to show you a real demon, prince of fools?" Shahkar growled, baring his teeth and flattening his bear-like ears. He swatted the rukit in the face with one of his paws. "You're becoming even more delusional every time I run over here to deal with your captives." Snorting in disgust, he removed himself from Rames' chest and just for good measure, kicked him with a hind foot in…er, that place that puts the male gender in agony. The rukit lay on the ground, moaning pitifully while clutching at his groin area.

"That hurts," Dakari said, wincing. Shahkar was now in front of Leo. As he reared, the turtle managed to catch a glimpse of two golden, scruffy eyebrows hanging over his hazel eyes. However, his train of thought was rudely interrupted when the ropes holding his feet gave way and he crashed headfirst into the ground.

"That was painful…" he groaned, rubbing his stricken noggin as he got to his feet. A similar noise came from Dakari when he got dropped. When Leo looked over, he nearly laughed at the poor rabbit's position. He was on his stomach, spread eagled, and face down in the dirt.

"Ya know, if you'd have put some pillows down there before dropping me on my head, I'd have appreciated this more." The turtle staggered a bit and rested himself against the pole to let all the blood return to the rest of his body. He felt a bit lightheaded for a second, but the feeling subsided when his legs went numb. Shahkar leaned up against him for support.

"Step aside, and let me pass," he commanded. The crowd split like their legs had given way.

Leo chanced a glance at Dakari and found himself staring longer than he should have, more from shock than amusement. "What happened to your ear?" he asked.

The rabbit wrinkled his nose and grabbed at Shahkar when the serulaf began to move forward. "When Rames jabbed his spear down, he got my ear because I moved to the side." Leo was felt a bit of a sting when he realized he could've saved his friend a wound. "As a result, I have a hole in it now." Noticing his friend's peculiar behavior, he consoled, "Don't worry, I've a feeling Usagi will give me grief when he sees me next time anyway, pierced ear or no."

"Will you two stop talking and walk?" Shahkar growled. "I feel as though I'm half dragging you." Dakari looked puzzled but Leo did as he was told. They had gotten fifty feet from the crowd when the serulaf angled sharply toward a beat-up building to the right. The tan rukit from before was standing in the doorway. "Your father isn't the least bit happy with you, Heinakwa," he called.

Heinakwa scowled blackly. "Tiphr 'fawurhseiye' cuan pru beryephr hika hseiaey in a zailasei ruf eyernp," she said, nodding her head curtly to Dakari and Leo. (My 'father' can go bury his head in a pile of dung.) The rabbit chuckled at her angry statement and replied in a similar fashion. She smiled maliciously. Leo, however, was completely lost.

"Shahkar, I've been wondering," he mused. "Why did he look confused when you talked to him?"

The serulaf sneezed. "Because to him all I'm spouting is barks, growls, snarls, and howls. He can't understand a word I say."

"Why is that?"

"Why are _you _able to converse with me?" he countered.

Leo scratched his head. "I don't know…maybe that drug had more of an effect on me than I thought."

"No, it's because you are of dragon friendship. Do you see those ears, the tail, the eyes?" The turtle nodded slowly, self-consciously blinking. "That is a sign that you have formed a bond with a Hiph dragon; in your language they would be called the High dragons. It is another reason that they," he said, jerking his head in the direction of the village, "think you an enemy. Those appendages mean nothing but trouble for them. At least, that's what Rames claims. And what he says basically goes around there. Does this make sense to you?"

The turtle felt like he did after one of Donnie's lectures on physics. "Kind of, but not really," he said truthfully.

Shahkar sat down and patiently began to explain. "Many decades ago, our race was formed because of an accidental encounter of dragon and wolfena. The dragon, also known as Rainbou, was determined to cause Xetyphaes as much trouble as she possibly could before he caught her and transformed her into the monster she is today. The wolfena was asked by her to stand still before being incinerated with her flames." Leo involuntarily cringed. "Out of the ashes, rose two puppies of our breed, a female and a male. They became known as the Fire Twins. Rainbou hid the two pups in a cave, where they grew. I'm sure you know how the rest of us were formed." The turtle nodded, rolling his eyes. He could just imagine Mikey's explanation: _"When a mommy serulaf and a daddy serulaf love each other very much, they decide to…"_ "My point is, we serulaf were created by dragons and therefore can communicate with them. However, our wolfena heritage prevents us from talking with anyone but the rukits and dragons. This is why you can understand me – and he cannot."

"Lengthy, but it makes sense. By the way, do you know where my katanas are?"

The serulaf perked his ears forward. "Your swords? I should expect they'd be in Rames hut. He loves to keep all manner of shiny objects in there. More of a crow than a canine if you ask me," he finished, a bit on the disgusted side.

Abruptly, Heinakwa snarled. "Hsei ai curutiinp!" (He is coming!)

"Who's coming?" Dakari demanded.

Shahkar was on his feet in seconds. "Rames. We aren't safe here," he muttered, darting inside the building. Several squeals told Leo what he was after. The turtle dashed after him to help, but failed to see the poorly placed ragged plank that stuck out into the doorway. And by the time he had, it already struck him in the face. _What a stupid way to pass out,_ he grumbled as his head hit the floor. Dakari could be heard valiantly trying to stifle his laughter as he blacked out.

When he woke up again, he was feeling especially embarrassed at his fluke. If Mikey had been there, he would've given Leo grief for as long as the orange-wearing turtle remembered the event. However, Dakari would be just as bad. The turtle sat up, finding himself on Tunali's back once again during the dusk stage of the day. "What happened?" he asked aloud.

He heard a hysterical chuckle. "You smacked yourself in the forehead with a plank, that's what!" his rabbit companion guffawed. Leo gave him an exasperated glare. "What? It was funny!" He looked around, trying to ignore his companion's giggling. They were currently riding across some sand dunes that you would normally find near an ocean. "By the way, have you any idea how big a bruise you have?" He groaned. "Oh, suppose you'll want to know what conspired while you oh so conveniently slept away your cares. Shahkar carted you and I away from the rukits' village because we didn't have time to saddle Tunali and Watishi. Otherwise, you would've woken up on a pole again. Anyway, he took us to his pack to rest for a while. Nice guys, I even got attacked by a few pups. You, however, were still out like a light. So, I saddled up, and we left!"

"And that was how long ago?"

"Two days."

"Two _days_?"

Watishi laughed in her coughing way as Dakari grinned. "Yes, humiliating, isn't it?"

"Just shut up."

"Snippety, aren't we?" the rabbit prodded relentlessly. Leo huffed in a dismissive mood, signing he was done talking. "Well, alright then, _Mr. Personality. _Have it your way." The turtle decided to take in more scenery rather than take heat from Dakari any further. A view of the ocean rose over the sand, sparkling yellow and orange like liquid gold in the setting sun. Abruptly, Tunali stopped.

"What now?" Dakari stood up in his stirrups.

"I don't know…Watishi's smelling some enemies up on those cliffs, I can feel it." The turtle squinted at the jagged shards reaching for the sky. His sharp eyes picked up some activity on the tops of them. "See anything?"

"Yeah…there's a group of them up there. I think it's be best to play it safe and avoid them," Leo advised.

Dakari grinned daringly. "Right! Ready to live dangerously?"

Ten minutes later, Leo found himself hugging the cliff-side wall under faint starlight. "How'd I let you talk me into this?" the turtle whispered, grabbing a handhold. The sound of pounding waves far below reminded him of the consequences should he lose his grip.

"I'm a surprisingly smooth talker."

Leo jumped nimbly onto a thin ledge, quickly regaining his balance. "Where was that skill when we were strung up like pigs at a luau?" he hissed.

Dakari's shrug, though more visible in the dark than reptile green because of his fur color, was still hard to discern. "I haven't a clue what a luau is, so I couldn't answer that." A sudden rumbling shook the cliffs, showering rocks onto both.

"What was that?"

The rabbit froze. "Earthquake!" And with that, an even more powerful tremor threw him off into midair.

"Dakari!" Leo lost his grip in the confusion of falling rocks, half diving after his plummeting companion. He remembered nothing except slamming agonizingly hard into the water's surface before all manner of breath was pounded out of his lungs by the crashing waves and he sank in a maelstrom of bubbles.

* * *

Uh-oh...(yelps and flees a horde of angry reviewers) Eeeeek! Stay away from me! HEEELP! Readers: "No more cliffies! No more cliffies!" Suffice it to say, I've opted to keep you guys guessing. And apparently, this is going to keep my nerves frayed too...my awareness has now risen five hundred points! Not even Chibi Rose Angel or pacphyscan successfully get me now! Chibi and pacphys: "Oh really..." (gulps) This is _not_ going to be pretty...BYE! (runs off)

LN


	11. Turned Upside Down

**Disclaimer: **Alla you fat lards in court should pretty much know the drill by now. And if any lawyers are reading this, come near me and I'll rip yer liver out.

A/N: Okay, sorry about the lack of updates lately. I've been sort of busy and the inspiration was having a hard time making it tothe front door of mymind.Hoo boy, I'm not feeling safe in my own home anymore. That trio of cliffies caused an uproar worthy of an Oscar. So, I think I'll enclose myself in a safe…In other news, the CGI TMNT movie that's coming out in 2007 is underway! If you visit my deviantArt page and go down to my desktop screenshot, you'll see a bit of what it's gonna look like. (grins in bliss) In case you're wondering why you can no longer find Movie Bloopers under my pen name, Rene' informed me of the consequences that would ensue if I didn't remove it. Stupid rules. (sobs) BTW, this is more of a transitional chapter than anything else. So it'll be notably shorter. _And _you get to see a different side of Leo…(chuckles evilly)

**11.**

Leo stirred, feeling the familiar roughness of sand chafe at his skin. Belatedly, he remembered what had happened…he and Dakari had plummeted into the ocean and the force of the impact knocked all breath out of his lungs. A few seconds before he had lost consciousness, something warm and sharp had seized his arms. He coughed and attempted to sit up, only to realize that his shell and legs had been completely submerged in heavy, wet sand. The turtle rubbed at his gritty eyes and looked around. He was sitting on the only beach in a small, sparkling cove. Jagged black cliffs and rocks surrounded him, looking as though they were aiming to pierce the sky.

Feeling his aching head as he stared at the star-punctured sky, he noticed the absence of his bandanna, finding only his damp green ears. Summoning what strength he had left, Leo pulled himself up, emerging from the sand with a sucking pop and grimaced when he realized his long tail would be a pain in the neck to get out. His swords were also gone, which made him sigh inwardly. He didn't enjoy hand-to-hand combat that much, but it looked like he'd be doing it for a while. A sort of throb was being emitted from his upper arms, and when he looked at them, he found talon indents.

Abruptly, the turtle felt something nip the end of his tail that derailed his train of thought completely. The sudden sting it brought made him utter an 'ow'. Not wanting to endure more bites, he feverishly began digging his legs out, unearthing sharp bits of mollusk shells and tiny crab-like creatures. He could swear one of them shook its claw at him before scuttling sideways away. Leo had one leg revealed and was busily working the other one out when a soft voice startled him.

"Um, excuse me?" He jumped and looked around, feeling rather foolish that he hadn't sensed her arrival. "I'm in the water," she informed him quietly. Leo looked ahead and spotted her almost completely submerged, not far from when he was sitting. Her green hair was long and flowed all around her petite pale face, concealing most of her features. Innocent gray eyes stared back at him under thin eyebrows. The only part of her showing was her head and arms. "Sorry, it looked like you were trying to find something," she answered shyly.

He nodded stiffly. "I was, actually. Who are you?"

She smiled warmly at him and pulled aside the right side of her voluminous locks. "My name is Rakaera," the girl said.

"Leonardo."

"That's a strange name, if you pardon me saying it, Leonardo. You're not from around here, are you?" An innocent enough question.

He scratched his ear, which had chosen this time to start tickling. "No," he replied slowly.

Rakaera blinked curiously and moved closer to him, long hair trailing behind in the water. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone like you before, Leonardo," she stated. "Has your race been in hiding somewhere?"

Leo pulled his other leg out of the sand. "I'm not from this planet, Rakaera."

Her eyes bulged in fascination. "Really? How'd you get here?" she inquired, propping her chin up on her hands.

"I..." Leo felt a bit hesitant answering her prying questions, so he decided to change the subject. "You seem very at home in the water."

She sighed. "It gets tiring, really it does. I hate having to stay in it all the time. And sorry, I didn't mean to pry."

The turtle smiled wanly. "That's alright, Rakaera. If you don't mind me asking, why are you staying in the water?"

Rakaera glanced at him with a look of disbelief. "Merfikah can't breathe the air you do."

"Mer-what?"

"Merfikah!" she explained. "We have a…a secret colony in the ocean. If my father knew of me talking to a surface dweller, I'd be grounded for a month," she added as a bit of an afterthought. Leo mused, associating them up with merpeople.

"So how do you breathe underwater?"

Rakaera giggled musically, as though it was only logical. "Gills, silly!" A tail broke the water behind her, shimmering wet in the waning moonlight. It was formed like a whale's, only ribbed with bony fingers that extended out of the skin, forming a line of widely spaced talons. "We have gills near our hips," she added, submerging the tail again. "Oh, and by the way…I think I might've found what you were looking for, Leonardo."

He became instantly alert. "Where?" Leo's hopes spiked that it might be Dakari.

The merfikah pointed out to sea. "Buried somewhere in the reefs. Are they two swords?"

Disappointment replaced his optimism. "Yeah."

"You'll have to come with me, though. I can't get them out by myself."

He stared at her. "How can I breathe underwater? I'm not a fish!"

Rakaera beckoned him into the water. "I can help with that. Just come into the water. You'll see." The turtle attempted to stand, but his still buried tail yanked stubbornly on his rear.

"Oh, for cryin' out loud…" He pulled it out like a tug of war rope, straining against the sand that was halting his progress. He finally got it out and found the culprit for the earlier sting. A crab was pinching the skin between two ribs of the fan, glaring angrily at him. Leo gently pried it off and let it go onto the sand, where it scuttled resentfully away.

"Ready?" Rakaera called. The turtle stood and walked into the cool salt water, his legs sloshing around. When it was chest high, he felt Rakaera take his hand. It was soft and cushioned. "When I tell you to, get underwater. You won't be able to breathe pure oxygen anymore. Okay?" He nodded as she gently pushed his head under. His ears detected a muffled word above the surface and he felt her slide under the water. 'Breathe' she mouthed when his lungs cried for air. Reluctantly, he inhaled the water and found, to his surprise, that he didn't start hacking it up.

The merfikah tugged on his hand and began swimming gracefully away from shore. Leo arrowed after her, using his tail to help propel himself along. Small fish darted around him, some dully colored, others shimmering brightly in the moonlight. He barely had enough time to duck a small furry animal that rocketed past his head. It veered around and came at him again, screeching to a halt in front of his plastron. It was a tiny otter-like thing, sleek and lithe. When the turtle reached out to touch it, it readily nuzzled his hand affectionately, making little squeaking sounds.

He smiled and petted it once more before swimming after Rakaera. The otter latched onto his tail with its front paws, squeaking all the while. Leo halted and turned, gently prying it off. It looked mournfully at him and nuzzled his shoulder.

"_He wants to play with you." _Had he been able to in the liquid, Leo would've jumped from the sudden intrusion into his mind. _"Sorry," _Rakaera apologized sheepishly. _"We only communicate with our minds underwater, since one can't really use vocal cords. All that comes out is bubbles and not recognizable speech." _The turtle nodded and endured another pleading nudge from the otter. _"He won't rest until you've done at least one thing with him. Ruri are quite persistent. Try enticing him to do some water tricks with you."_

Feeling extremely foolish, the turtle did a tentative summersault, watching in rapt amusement as the little ruri repeated it twice in a row, squeaking happily and twirling around. Then Leo swam quickly down to the ridged sand on the seafloor and kicked off powerfully, breaching the water like a dolphin and diving back in. Again, his little performing friend repeated it, more than was necessary in his joy. Chirruping his thanks for the playtime, he rubbed his soft-furred head against Leo's hand affectionately, withdrew, and rocketed away towards the distant cove, leaving a trail of bubbles in his wake.

"_That was quite cute," _Rakaera commented with a giggle. She swam to a tangle of smooth rocks, writhing kelp, and colorful coral, parting the aquatic plants and slipping deftly inside the forest. Leo found himself being attacked on all manner of sides by pleading ruri the moment he entered, some adult, others juvenile like the one he had so reluctantly entertained earlier. The merfikah laughed at his plight as the energetic, squealing animals mobbed him. _"Away, little ones, we don't have time for play." _She shooed them away gently and grabbed Leo's hand, pulling him away from the pack of furry clowns. _"They get very angry if you openly reject their invites," _she explained, _"which is why you must always be gentle. No matter their age, they have a child-like understanding of the world and wouldn't understand the tasks we have to do."_

Leo spotted one of his swords a bit faster than Rakaera did and made a beeline for it. He wrenched it out of the kelp it had become entangled in when his companion poked his arm and pointed. The other was wedged between two rocks. The task of getting it out might have been easier said then done, as a nasty-looking, plesiosaur-like reptile was dozing right beside it. At Leo's questioning look, the merfikah beside him quietly explained.

"_It's a yinru. Normally they aren't easily provoked unless their territory is invaded. In this case, we shall have to do just that." _She looked troubled as Leo studied its features. Its back and neck were ridged with a line of bone-ribbed skin that extended down its odd tail and curved around the end to stop at its hind flippers, which were long as baseball bats. Its elongated head was nestled between two mounds of sand. _"Female by the looks of it. And a mother. See those black things under her flippers? Those are her eggs. Be careful when approaching her, there's no telling what she'll do."_

Silently as possible, Leo moved forward a bit, katana at ready in case something should go wrong. It got uncomfortably silent as he swam, the only sound water in his ears. The mother yinru moved, stirring up sand, and settled back down within a few seconds. The turtle let out his breath, unaware that he'd been holding it. With a swift stroke, he had arrived at his katana. Trying not to make a whole lot of racket, he grabbed the sword and yanked forcefully on it. The resulting screech on the rocks achieved the one thing they had been trying not to.

The mother roared and snapped angrily at Leo, missing his legs by inches. He dodged another hastily aimed bite and forced his tail down, propelling forward. Rakaera grabbed his hand and began swimming toward the distant shore like the devil was after her, sneaking quick glances backward. The yinru had taken up pursuit and was steadily gaining on them.

Suddenly, several brown bullets shot past them, ramming the yinru with squeals of rage. She bit and snapped furiously at the faster ruri but couldn't land a hit in the maelstrom of activity that had stopped her in her tracks. The little furry animals were butting her in the head and chest, but even their blows did no good. Finally seizing one in her jaws, she crushed its back with her saw-like teeth, filling the water with crimson blood. Feeling a strong sense of justice rise inside himself, Leo let go of Rakaera and rocketed back at the furious mother, swords out.

The ruri pack parted in a flurry of bubbles to let him pass. The yinru mother eyed him angrily, clacking her jaws together. Then she lashed out at him, lighting-fast. He was ready, and stabbed the roof of her mouth. Filling the water with grating moans of agony, she recoiled from the sword. Spouting various pained sounds, she turned tail and swam back toward her eggs.

Rakaera grabbed his hand again. _"Hurry, we must get to the surface! You're running out of time!" _He did find it beginning to get harder to breathe by the second as she dragged him up. They breached the water's surface in a halo of droplets. Leo took in grateful gulps of air as he paddled toward shore. When his feet touched bottom, Rakaera stopped.

"I can't go any further than this," she explained softly, meeting his eyes. "Oh, and I believe this is yours." She proffered a sopping wet strip of blue fabric, something that Leo received with gratitude. A moment of uncomfortable quiet followed.

"Well, I…um, guess I should get going now…"

She nodded. "Yes. Farewell, Leonardo." Rakaera waved at him and plunged back under the water, vanishing from his sight.

Leo was on his way back to shore when he heard a familiar moo of concern. Standing on the shore was Tunali, who was quivering with excitement. As soon as he had gotten out of the water, the teela tackled him to the sand, licking his face happily. "Ow, Tunali, get…off me!" he grunted, enduring the pink tongue with squirms of discomfort. "Please, I can't get up…oh, stop, that tickles!" His resisting grunts dissolved into giggles as Tunali licked the spot between plastron and carapace.

Finally deciding he had done enough, the teela backed away, grinning madly, it seemed. Leo noticed, with surprise, that Tunali had his scabbards. "How on earth did you get those?" he muttered, genuinely confused. "As far as I know, you didn't jump in after me…" The turtle shrugged and took them. Had he been a bit more aware, he would have seen a gleaming, curled, golden-copper feather on Tunali's fur as he mounted him.

* * *

Sor cursed and took a defensive stance. "Of all the rotten luck!" he growled blackly, unsheathing his sword. Mikey squinted up at a black form that was currently sitting on the rim of the roof. It roared, showering them with multicolored light as it shook its gigantic head. 

"Yes, I'm happy to see you too, Sor Lightblade." A tiny form jumped down (actually, it was more like slid off the creature's head) and landed none too gracefully on the punctured mattress. "Ouch! Good grief, haven't you people heard of heather?" it squeaked, jumping up and clutching its posterior. The turtle froze, recognizing the voice instantly from his dream. It continued muttering curses to itself and wincing publicly as it rubbed its bottom painfully.

"_You're _Xetyphaes?" he asked in amused disbelief, staring at the diminutive two-foot tall red-robed character who was currently dusting himself off with all the panic of a person covered in parasitic ticks. He could hardly mask his laughter when Xetyphaes' little red cap fell off his head, exposing wisps of thin white hair. He grabbed his hat and jammed it back on his head with a growl, upsetting his too-large robe into slipping off one thin shoulder. He looked more like a version of Yoda gone wrong than an evil dictator.

"Don't act so surprised, demon," he sneered, sticking out his pointed tongue and squinting peevishly at Mikey.

Mike threw his arms up in exasperation. "Why does everybody on this planet think I'm a demon?" he cried. "I'm a _turtle _for cryin' out loud! A _turtle_!"

Xetyphaes rubbed his stubby nose and sniffed, obviously having a whopper of a superiority complex to deal with. "No idea what you're talking about," he grunted, mouth curling slightly up at the corners into a sneer, long red ears pointing straight out to the side. "Though _she_ did mention the word turtle."

Kiara began to get a sinking feeling as she counted the dragons around her. "You…" she ground out whipping out a rapier. "What have you done with Bima?" As the magnitude of the loss sank into the group, Iwansi bristled angrily.

He snorted noncommittally and waved her off with a roll of his red eyes. "Oh, Icusi? Nothing much. Rainbou, would you like to show off your daughter?" The large rainbow dragon held aloft in her claws a bloody form that could barely be recognized as a dragon. Claw gouges riddled her sides and neck. Her legs were broken at odd angles. She no longer had a tail, and one of her ears was nearly bitten off. With the growl, the possessed mother threw her fatally wounded child down onto the floor, eliciting several angry gasps from her siblings.

Nobody moved. They were all in shock, horror, as they stared at Bima's bloody crumpled form. "Bima," Iwansi whispered, a tear escaping her eye. "No…oh…" Stricken with grief she let out a long, heart-wrenching wail of sorrow, all of her being trembling at the effort of standing up. Kiara simply stared, wide-eyed, at the shallow rise and fall of the fatally wounded silver-blue dragon on the floor. Xetyphaes chuckled unfeelingly and went so far as to cruelly kick the near-dead, wingless dragon in the back.

Mikey clutched his head in his hands, praying futilely that this was all just a dream and nothing more. "Please…don't let her be dead…" Finally, somebody took action, springing the rest out of their disbelieving daze.

Letting out a bellow of pure rage, Kiyo charged the tiny red dictator, spraying fire and gusts of wind at him. "No words, no _curse_ can describe the hate I feel for you now!" the little green dragon spat venomously, launching into a lightning fast tackle. Xetyphaes casually examined a cuticle and yawned in feigned boredom as Kiyo froze abruptly, struggling, in mid air.

"Nice try, Seiney." He smiled evilly, moving his four-fingered hand in a jerk to the right, throwing Kiyo into the wall by some invisible force. He groaned and tried to stand but slumped in his failed effort. "Who's next? You, Eyayedi?" he inquired sweetly, inclining his head at Iwansi.

She blinked away her tears, spewing roiling black smoke out her nostrils. "I don't care how much power you have, idiot, you will not call _me _anything but my real name!" Iwansi went invisible in an instant. Mike looked around in a panic for her. In a split second, Iwansi came hurtling out of nowhere, seemingly connecting with Xetyphaes and piercing him with her claws. She passed through him, tumbling onto the ground and flipping back up with a murderous growl of hate.

He did the universal good luck sign at her, enraging the dragon further. "I thought you would prove more of a challenge to capture, Eyayedi, but it seems I erred." To couple injury with insult, he pulled his lower eyelid down and stuck out his tongue. "Bleh!"

She bared her teeth murderously, flattening her ears. "Quit talking like Shakespeare, you numbskull of an—" He cut her off by sticking out his index finger and moving it around in ovals. The yellow dragon went spinning into the wall next to Kiyo, groaning and nearly unconscious.

Aireilei growled in her prone state, clearly fighting whatever control he had over her. "Get…out…of…my mind!" she moaned, thrashing around wildly. Kiara had to let go of her to avoid being impaled.

Xetyphaes grinned maliciously at her. "Ah yes, the famed Kiara! I've been waiting for this day, commander," he declared, holding aloft an ebony jewel that he had pulled from a fold in his robes. It sparkled with a black aura of power before firing off a volley of energy shots. She ducked, jumped, and dodged the first ten but the eleventh smote her forcefully in the leg, eliciting a cry of pain from her.

She staggered upright only to be seized and smacked headfirst by an invisible force into the floor. She collapsed, out cold. Mike positioned his nunchuks nervously, lashing his tail. "And what are _you _supposed to be?" Xetyphaes sneered, aiming his jewel at the turtle's head. "Some half bred freak of nature? Or perhaps you found a monster costume in the king's closet!" Mike ventured a cocky smile.

"Dude, I've been called worse. Trust me. That didn't hurt one bit."

"Perhaps this will then!" From the jewel in his hand sprung a black griffin, made purely out of darkness. It screeched a battle cry, then charged the turtle. He side-stepped casually as it went crashing into the wall.

"Try again, sucker."

The griffin squawked angrily, beating its wings as it turned around. Mikey leapt up and smacked it in the head as it came sprawling by in another failed charge, getting the brunt of a hastily aimed slash in his side.

"Michelangelo one, crispy-fried black chicken zero!" He did a mocking bow as the griffin disintegrated into thin air. "Anybody else?" He uttered a pained grunt as he was swatted aside by an enormous clawed paw. "Ouch, that's gonna hurt in the morning," he groaned, getting up from where the wall had cruelly stopped him.

"Change of plans, Rainbou," Xetyphaes informed his slave as the mind-controlled dragon lowered her massive head. "Just take Seiney. We don't need the other three." He shuffled over to Kiyo's limp body and lifted him up, grunting since his thin arms (Xetyphaes: "Oooh, LN, you're gonna pay….she's calling me a wimp!" growls "Can I kill her? _Please, _can I kill her?" is restrained by Yulakai) could barely sustain the dragon's bulk. "Gad, he's heavy!"

Mike fumbled for a shuriken in his belt pouch, clutching his stinging side with the other hand. "Let the midget go!" Three of the throwing stars whizzed at the tiny dictator. They bounced abruptly off an invisible shield and clattered to the floor. "Dude, I'm warning you, you do _not _want to take Kiyo," he threatened, knowing full well that his goose was as good as cooked by this point. "Leo's gonna have your head—"

"I don't care if this Leo fellow has another Opal Eye; he can't stop me—" Xetyphaes gave a pregnant pause. "—and neither can you!" Mikey felt like a giant fist had dealt a blow to his stomach as he doubled over in pain. He fell forward with a groan onto the floor, out cold.

Sor growled out a curse and raised his sword. "You touch him, and I'll kick your sorry—" Xetyphaes picked up a piece of rubble and pitched it with inhuman strength at the gunghir. It struck him in the gut, causing him to moan involuntarily and fall forward.

"You listen to me, Sor Lightblade," he said, bending over to make the statement all the more humiliating. "You can tell that crusty old coot Tor and Aireilei when she wakes up that there's no way you can stop me from getting what I want. So, sweet dreams!" With that, he held the black jewel in front of Sor's face and blasted him into the crushing oblivion of unconsciousness.

"Oh….ouch…" Mike groaned and blearily opened his eyes. "Hello." With a grunt he got up from his spread-eagled position on the floor. "Man, my neck hurts like shell…" He grabbed his head and jerked it to the right, heaving a relieved sigh when several cracks came from his spine. He blinked and looked around. They were still in the king's chambers…and apparently, he was currently the only one conscious, judging from the other bodies strewn around the room. "That complicates stuff," he grumbled. When he saw Bima's broken form on the floor, everything came back to him in a rush.

Hot tears pricked at the backs of his eyes. "Gosh…I'm sorry, girl, I should've paid attention to where you were," he lamented, kneeling beside her. It was horrible. He doubted that unless she got help quickly, she would never walk again. Her breathing was very soft and nearly undetectable. Only the miniscule rise and fall of her maimed side said she was alive. Belatedly he touched the arrowhead on the chain around his neck, remembering the event three months ago when he had almost died in Don's arms with a mortal arrow wound.

He was pretty sure this was just how his brother had felt when Aireilei had shot him in the chest. Mike squeezed his eyes shut. _Where are you guys? _he asked no one in particular. He just needed his brothers. Even Raph would be a welcome sight right now. That thought brought a smile to his face. Knowing Raph, he would probably kill Mikey for that comment.

Somebody let out a pained, hacking cough behind him and he slowly turned around. Sor was gradually coming to, but the turtle couldn't stop himself from gasping. The gunghir's face was disfigured by a gash that ran down from the left temple to his chin and across his face. He didn't know how Sor had managed to move with the blood streaming from the wound. "Mi-key…" he moaned, eyes rolling up in his skull, clearly in agony.

"Don't talk." Mikey glanced around for something, anything, with which to bandage Sor's face. The tattered curtains in the corner would have to do. He leapt nimbly to his feet and bounded, not without a pang of guilt, over Aireilei's twitching form and Kiara. Not too gently, he ripped down the drapes and in the process was showered with dust. "Sheesh, where are the maids?" he grunted, rolling up his prize. "I hate this hotel! I swear, I've never seen more horrible service!" Sor gave him a lop-sided grin. "This is gonna hurt, Sor, so…er, bear with me, okay?"

"Don't bother, Mike," Aireilei mumbled, coming to sit next to him. "I'll do it." She listlessly raised her hands and held them over Sor's bloody face. A soft white glow surrounded her. Gradually, the gunghir's face began to piece itself back together. Skin and muscle knitted and formed where it had been blasted away. When she finished, all that could be seen was a large ropy scar extending down the length of his face.

"Thanks," he said quietly, pulling himself up and grabbing his arm with a wince. "I think you should see to Bima now."

"What? Why? What's wrong with her?" In that instant, Sor realized that Aireilei hadn't yet seen her sister's grievous wounds and bit his lip as she turned. She choked in shock, all manner of speech failing her. "…sister…no…" The white dragon was paralyzed, and Mike wasn't sure if she was simply trying to cope or digest the information. She just sat there, wide-eyed and uncomprehending of all events around her. "What have I done?" she whispered, clutching her face in her hands and whimpering.

"You didn't do anything, Aireilei," Mike said, exchanged glances with Sor, who looked stabbed. "It wasn't your fault."

"Are you sure?" she questioned coldly, looking mournfully at him with piercing periwinkle eyes. "Is that really how you look at it?" He nodded, a bit confused. "Then let me point something out for you. If I hadn't been so bent on reminiscing, I would've noticed that she had gone missing! I would've investigated it! And as it is, I nearly killed her!"

"Do you even know who did it, Aireilei?" Her composure turned from sad to stormy. "He…knocked you out with something so you wouldn't interfere. He even took Kiyo, but I'm not sure why." Aireilei's eyes blazed, the very picture of wrath.

"I do," she growled, punching the floor. "He needed a male dragon for his cloning to be complete! Don't you see? My mother is his female dragon, so all he needed was the mate for her!"

"That's sick!" Mike gasped, feeling a bit nauseous. "You mean he'd actually force her child to…with her….eeew…" He stuck his tongue out, disgusted.

Aireilei nodded balefully. "Yes, he would…"

The orange-banded turtle sighed and rubbed his forehead. "And to think I actually laughed at him when I first saw him."

Her face darkened, putting a damper on his stab to humor them. "You laughed at him? It's an unspoken rule that nobody laugh at him. I'm surprised you didn't get off as bad as Sor, if not worse." Sor nodded silently, his long ears drooping.

"Oh, and by the way, you ever tell your mom what a wicked right hook she has?" He winced and slapped a hand on his plastron, feigning pain. Despite the circumstances, Aireilei smiled. "You gonna heal Bima, or what?"

She gently touched her stricken sister's ripped ear. "I can try."

"No way, dudette. You're not gonna try, you're gonna _do_." He clapped a hand on her shoulder and grinned widely. "Trust me, I know you can do this." Aireilei began with the head, mending the tattered ear and several long scratches. As she worked her way down, Bima's face began taking on some color again. Once her front legs were healed, she stirred. "Uh-oh, she's waking up. Better do her tail fast." The tail had been torn off about a fourth away from the base of the appendage, forming a Minx-like stump. Just as Aireilei was fixing her last leg, she opened her eyes.

"Oh, Claw…that hurts like the Dickens," she moaned. "And I can't feel my tail. Is that a bad thing?"

"Nope," Mikey assured with a smile. "We're just happy you're alive."

"I did get pretty waxed, didn't I?" she sighed heavily, laying her head back down in a pile of springy moss that had taken over the room. Mike slowly opened his mouth to spout something to break the dismal mood, but she stopped him with a glare. "And don't you dare say I should see the other guy." He clapped his mouth shut, visibly deflated. "I know for a fact I didn't do any damage to my mother…"

"Can we all just stop feeling sorry for ourselves and get a move on?" Sor interrupted, rubbing his face.

"Well, gee, who died and made you king, grumpy?"

Just then, a soft rustle came from the door, spurring them to start in surprise and whirl around. There stood Naicro, who looked for all the world like he had just walked in on his execution. "I am sorry," he whispered, green eyes sad.

Mike stared curiously at him. "For what, dude?"

He bowed his head, shamefaced. "Tellling Xetyphaes of your location..."

* * *

"No way out? Aw, great! Just perfect!" Raph grumbled. The tentacle thrashed around in the hole, raining rocks down. 

Lharom, now in wolfena form, had his hackles raised and teeth bared. "Just our luck that it's a big one too!" His rump was up against the dragon crystal, next to Don. They braced against another small tremor. "Unless one of you have a plan, we're sitting ducks!" The tentacle withdrew, its owner trying a different tactic.

"What's it doing?" Kyrunir squeaked, terrified. Ukeera looked just as scared but being a person who had to deal with a wimp her entire life, she kept her hysteria in check.

"Finding another crack!" Lharom realized, ears perking forward. "Hurry, help me barricade this hole in case it comes back!" He dashed for a large boulder sitting in the corner and pushed up against it with his side. The rock moved about an inch every time he pushed. "Will you lazy bums help me?" he growled, ramming it. Raph shrugged and went to help Lharom push while Don looked around for an exit.

"I didn't even get the chance to swing a sword…" Kyrunir lamented, curling up into a ball. Ukeera growled in a somewhat peeved way.

"Will you shut up, Ky? It's hard enough keeping a cool head with you whimpering every second!"

By now, Raph and Lharom had successfully wedged the boulder into the hole. And almost immediately after Rijinn's shaky sigh of relief, a tentacle shot out of the ceiling and seized the wolfena, beginning to withdraw into the cave again. Lharom's eyes took on a glazed look, one that looked unconcerned even I the face of death. Saesha yelled "No!" and lunged for the disgusting thing, latching onto it with her sharp claws. It gave a low hiss and dropped Lharom on the ground. The purple dragon clung to it stubbornly (A/N: I should've said 'like staticky socks', since that's what I used to encourage my peers with when they were enduring the hang in P.E.) as it thrashed around, clearly wanting nothing to do with her.

Don looked up after a few seconds of it. "What the heck are you doing, Saesha?" he all but screamed in surprise.

"Causing it pain, Donnie!" Raph shot back. "Even you should be able to see that!"

Lharom was gradually regaining his sanity. For a few seconds after being dropped, he had muttered ridiculous rants about the rights of forest nymphs, at which Raph felt compelled to chuckle at. "Causing it pain…yes, yes, that's what we want…not nymphs in burning trees…" He slumped in the middle of his mad mumbling.

"Well, that's one down."

"Raph, quit it!" Don cried, taking an offensive position. "Drag him somewhere safe, he can't stay there for long!"

"Why can't you?" In the next moment, his question was answered as Don whipped out his Bo and charged at the enormous tentacle. He jumped nimbly aside to avoid a blind attempt to smack him away, raised his staff, and dealt the writhing thing a hard thwack that left a pink welt on it. Rijinn regained his composure, bounding toward the tentacle to see if he could do any damage to it. Finding to opening into which he could sink his claws, the red dragon inhaled deeply and spat a crimson ball of crackling flames at the top of the appendage. A shriek like the sound of nails against a chalkboard split the air as his trajectory smote it, slicing it right in half.

He whistled. "Hoo, yeah! Oh, look at me'n my bad self!" Rijinn started doing a bad impression of the Kuzco from the Emperor's New Groove. "I ripped you right out of the air!" He mimed slashing the tentacle in two with his claws. "Oh, I'm a big fat tentacle and I'm stranglin' you to the death! Well, not today pal! Uh-huh!" Then, of all things, he busted out some Egyptian moves and strutted around the cavern.

Raph stared at him. "Remind me why we even showed him that movie," he said to Don, who stood nearby with a look of perplexed disturbedness on his face.

Rijinn's victory dance came to a sickening halt when three more tentacles burst out of the ceiling. "Eeep!" The red dragon dashed away to keep Kyrunir company.

"Wimp," the turtle in red snorted as Saesha took aim. He plugged his ears as the inevitable screech came from above when Saesha melted off another tentacle. Black blood oozed from the wound. "Hah, that'll teach…Oh crap." Raph was in the middle of smirking victoriously when the sizzling appendage grew back in a second's notice.

Don paled. "This isn't good…" At this point, Kyrunir had nearly passed out from fear and Ukeera was valiantly trying to make him get a grip.

"Gee, Don, ya think?"

"We're going to have to find an escape route," he mused quietly. "We can't kill that thing without bright light, and that we don't have. Saesha, can you probe the walls for a weak spot?" The purple dragon nodded grimly, activating her telekinesis, and ran along the wall. "Raph, while she's busy, we need to distract the beihl. Rijinn, get over here!"

The red dragon gulped and made his way warily over to Don and Raph. "Yes?" he squeaked.

"We need your help to distract this thing. If one of us gets caught, you have to incinerate it. Okay?" Rijinn nodded stiffly as the two turtles lunged. Raph was thrown off the tentacle the moment he landed on it and stabbed his Sais deep into its flesh. He hit the large crystal particularly hard, his shell producing a sickening crack.

"Oh…shell, that _hurts_…"

"Raph!" Don leapt away from the writhing appendage, coming to his brother's aid. "Raph," he said, voice cracking with worry. "Turn around." He did so, painfully. Don probed his shell gently with careful fingers. Once he slipped, and Raph was forced to grit his teeth against the pain. "Sorry," Don apologized quickly. "Looks like you've dented your carapace in a bit."

"My what?"

"Your shell."

"Don, don't you dare give me bed rest," Raph warned, standing up. "You know I'll make your life miserable."

"Yeah, I know."

A deafening boom interrupted them and Saesha tumbled out of a new hole in the wall. "I found our way out," she grunted, falling over. Don took one look at the dragon in the crystal.

"I'm getting a feeling she's not supposed to be in there," Rijinn muttered, staring at her.

Saesha, suddenly on her feet, snorted flames. "She _isn't_! She just sent me a message! She knows that beihl's in here and just told me it can suck the life out of her too if she doesn't get out of here!"

Kyrunir stood shakily. "Can we just go please?"

"Mmm, yes, I would like to protest for nymphs with you…pot pie? Oh, yes, thanks, I'd love a piece…"

Ukeera shot the mumbling Lharom a glare. "I wish he would just wake up and quit being so ridiculous."

"He's goin' senile," Raph grunted, picking up Rijinn. "C'mon, let's blow this Popsicle stand!"

"Hold it…" Saesha's eyes glowed briefly and the crystal shattered in an explosion.

"Warn us when you're gonna do that!" the red garbed turtle bellowed. The dragon inside lay amongst the rubble, trying to stand.

"I apologize," she grunted. "But being imprisoned for so long has slightly weakened my legs." She stretched her pale yellow body, several creaks coming from the bones. "Ahh, that's better! Now, shall we get out of here?" Nobody answered her, as they were already running into the tunnel. The dragon looked at Lharom, who was still conversing wildly with thin air in his feverish state, and grabbed the scruff of his neck in her teeth. He squeaked a bit.

"Oh, good heavens, this nymph's biting me…"

"Hurry, get in here!" Don shouted, motioning to her over a thunderous rumble. She dragged, half carried the delirious shape-shifter to the tunnel, throwing him inside and hopping in herself. "Help me roll this boulder up!" The turtle indicated a large circular slab of rock and began pushing it with all his might. She dug her claws into the rock, throwing her weight against it and moving it scant feet. Finally, it clicked into place and all light was cut off. "Thanks," he panted, walking down the tunnel. Or, more precisely, up, because it was sloping slightly vertically.

The dragon grabbed Lharom in her mouth again, preparing for a long walk. Several minutes later, they emerged into morning sunlight, half blinded by it. They had just come out of a tunnel through a cliff face. The sea spray spattered them with salt water as they descended to the beach. As soon as he was on solid ground, Kyrunir collapsed.

"I've never had a more horrific experience in my life!" he cried, letting the waves lap at his feet.

"I did," Ukeera muttered. "You were born." Raph snickered.

"That was cold," the turtle stated.

The pale yellow dragon gently laid Lharom on the sand, withdrawing her head in surprise when he leapt up and began clawing in no particular direction. "ARGH! Gimme that beihl's head, where izzee, I'll knock him limb from…limb from…Urk…" Then he collapsed again, leaving his seven companions in complete confusion.

Saesha put a paw on his head. "When the beihl got him, it sucked some of his life force away. He'll be alright, but for right now, his mind is perplexed."

"Yeah? Well so's mine," Raph grumbled. "How'd we get to the beach if we started out on mountains and plains?"

Don sat down to rest. "Well, it isn't that hard to figure out. We must have slid farther than we knew when we entered that cave. And the passages are longer than they would seem in the dark. So, technically…" He faded into Don-speech, which the others readily ignored.

Just then, an urgent call came from farther down the shore. "What was that?"

"A cry for help! It wasn't human, though, more like an animal's…"

"Yeah. Haradrian Lassie, here we come," Raph grumbled. "Where's Timmy? Trapped under a log?"

Saesha clawed his leg as a warning. "I'll teleport over there." And she did, vanished without a trace. A few moments later, she reappeared, only with a teela and person in tow. "Don, take a look at him for me," she ordered, pulling the person down from the teela's back.

Don gasped. "Holy mackerel…"

"What?" Lharom was up again, this time talking sense. He was behind Don in a minute, peering over his shoulder. "Dakari!" he cried.

* * *

(grins) Okay, guys, I've brought back Dakari and Leo, safe and sound, so no killing of good guys. However, I do believe I'll get an earful for giving Bima a bit more than she bargained for. See, the thing is, I had forgotten entirely to insert her into last chapter. So, that was the only logical way to explain her absence. Sorry. (shields Naicro) Nobody hurt the elderly dragon! (pets him) And...er, don't kill Xetyphaes either. I still have uses for him. Anyway, please review! 

LN


	12. Feminine Intervention

**Disclaimer: **If any of you lamebrains happened to look at my last hundred or so disclaimers, you'd know the answer. I don't own them, sadly enough, and don't get any profit from writing this stuff (hey, that rhymed! I'm a poet and I didn't even know it!).

A/N: Well, good news, people. I have officially caught two more plot bunnies for the series, both of which are itching for a written story. However, I won't be releasing them until after this tome is finished. Okay? Good. Now that we've got that established, please pray or cross your fingers for my mom. She is trying to start a floral design company for extra money to deal with our rising school tuition.

**12.**

"Hey, lady! Wake up!" I jerked my head up from the counter in groggy surprise, blinking owlishly. In front of me stood a weary-looking, yet rather brutish auburn rukit who looked ready to drop where he stood. I yawned and stretched my arms, making satisfied noises as the joints cracked. "I said I wanted a room, whore," he growled irritably, adjusting his pack. I eyed him as sluggishly as I could, just to make him a bit angrier. Men like him never made good customers, but as far as my father was concerned, they did. Their gold put food on the table, at least.

"Yeah, so what type?" I asked, scratching my ear in an attempt to show him that I was bored with his company. His hand went to his sword. "I just asked you a question, don't go getting a stick up your butt," I muttered, leaning on the counter.

"No adjoining rooms, a door that locks, and I'd like a bath ready when I get in there."

I shrugged, though inwardly I was seething. I hate people who automatically think they have superiority over you. Being as this was a town where women were considered low as dirt, it happened quite often to me. "I can't guarantee a bath, _sir._ We're rather short-staffed at the moment." No lie there. The only workers here were myself, father, my lower-than dung brother, and my wolfena pup, Eyru. He glared at me, his gaze lowering to my chest. Not that I'd really mind, after all, it's all covered in thick fur, but still… "Alright, here's your key!" I growled, shoving the dull piece of bronze at him. "Just look at my _eyes _when you want a room and not my cleavage!" Just as he turned to go down the hall, I reminded him of my dues. He let out an animalistic snarl and slammed two banged-up silver coins on the counter.

"You're welcome," I mumbled, turning around to go into the back room. I nearly tripped over my dress on the way there, ripping the edge neatly for the seventh time or so. Dresses are right up there with the things I loathe, along with Xetyphaes, because I can't move my tail worth beans and it feels like I've got poop stuck up my rear when it's flat against my butt. I entered the hot, stuffy back room where I slept and slipped through another door into my father's room, where Eyru sat tied to his bed post, whimpering. "Hey little guy," I whispered soothingly, kneeling on the wood floor to pet him. "How was your day?"

He coughed and licked his pink nose. "Mine was awful. This moron with no manners just came in and demanded a room while staring at my…" Eyru yipped and pawed my foot. "Oh, okay, you're too young for that sort of graphic stuff. I see." He started panting. I stood up and brushed off my dress, scowling. "Alright, I'll get you water. Just hang on a minute."

I pushed open the door and trotted swiftly down the hall into the dim room where I had dealt with that mannerless mutt, going around the counter and grabbing a pan from the bar. I shivered as a cool breeze blew through my blond fur. It was dark outside and I took great care to act submissive in front of the Empire guards stationed around the inn. When I reached the stables out back and dipped the bowl into the water trough, I heard a soft noise behind me. Couldn't have been a teela or quiffer, but just to make sure, I craned my head around. Nobody in sight except for a confused quiffer's head.

It began to squeak in a most annoying way, and quite airily too. I put down my bowl with a quiet curse and went to shush it, stroking its scaly head and petting its spiny ridge. Once it had settled down and stopped grunting, I let it be and went back to fetch my water bowl. But when I arrived at the trough, I found it had disappeared. "Hmph. That's odd…" I muttered under my breath, scratching an ear. Normally rukits have extremely acute hearing but I don't even know what happened to that pan.

Thinking it must have been buried in the straw, I knelt and rummaged around in it, finding nothing once more. "Okay, Aeki, you're seeing things. You probably just forgot it inside and imagined you had filled it with water…" I was on my feet in seconds and dashed as fast as one can in a dress out of that stable, slowing down when I was meters behind the Empire guards. One of them snickered suggestively and I pulled the ugliest grimace I could muster at him before slipping inside. I was in the process of muttering dark oaths when I tripped over something on the floor and fell flat on my face.

"Ow, who put a log here…" I grumbled, getting up. When I saw what I had fallen over, I gasped. My father lay out cold on the floor, a nicely sized bump on the back of his head. My look of shock quickly morphed into an evil grin. If my dad was unconscious, that meant I could tie him up and put him in the broom closet to rot while I escaped this dirty town. I ran back into his room and untied Eyru, bringing back the long rope that had bound him to the bed. "Okay, dear ol' dad," I chuckled, pulling his arms behind his back and tying a strong knot around his hands. "I'd like to see you get out of _this_." Then I brought his legs up, using the same piece of rope to bind his feet to his hands. Satisfied with my hog tie job, I grabbed his arms and hefted him over the counter. He landed with a hard thump behind it, and an audible groan, much to my pleasure. I hopped over, opening a cellar door and rolling him into it. With a smirk, I slammed the board down and pushed a barrel full of _biey _onto it. He'd be stuck in there for a long time.

Then it hit me: I had no clue who knocked out my father. That complicated things. It meant that whoever did was still in here, and probably watching me. Okay, what to do. The adventurous side of me nudged toward the 'find them and thank them for putting a lump on my father's noggin' option while my more cautious side said 'get help'. Naturally, I agreed with my dangerous side and started down the hallway. A few times I could have sworn I saw the very shadows move, but my eyes were most likely playing tricks on me, so I kept going. About halfway to the end of the hallway, I spotted a cracked open door and pressed my ear against it as silently as I could.

However, a few seconds into my eaves dropping, I felt the cold touch of steel against my throat and something scaly wrapping around my ankles to prevent my escape. "What do you want?" the owner of both hissed. He had a strange accent, almost as though he had a chip on his shoulder and was daring me to try and knock it off. The door opened abruptly, showing the occupant in candlelight.

The green guy in the doorframe looked me over with astonishingly bright purple eyes. "Don't hurt her, Raph, just bring her inside," he mumbled in a tenor voice. My captor growled in a menacing tone and removed his weapon from my neck, nudging me forward. I rubbed my arm, feeling very intimidated as I shuffled inside. Purple shut the door and locked it with a faint click. "Now, can you tell me what you're doing at this time of night?" he asked me, staring as I leaned against the wall.

"I live here," I retorted cheekily, immediately regretting it. Red eyes glared at me from beside Purple.

"I shoulda just knocked her out cold like that other guy," he grumbled, rubbing an eye. He also grunted something to Purple, who hemmed and hawed thoughtfully.

Purple elbowed him hard in the ribs. "You don't hit a lady, Raph."

"She was being nosy," Raph insisted, throwing his arms up in exasperation. "Can't you admit you were a little afraid of her seeing me, Don?"

Don yanked him out of the darkness and gently shoved him toward the beds. "Raph, just quit it. I'll deal with this. You can help Saesha with Dakari." Raph grouched irritably and passed me with a venomous glare. I gulped when Don returned his piercing gaze to me. "What's your name?"

"Aekishala. It's a bit of a mouthful, so everybody calls me Aeki," I answered, feeling slightly uncomfortable under his unmoving stare.

He perked his lavender ears forward. "I see…" he said thoughtfully. "By the way, Aeki, Raph mentioned seeing you bind that other rukit he whacked and stuffing him in a cellar. Would you care to explain that too?"

"Well, he's my father," I began. "I hate him with a bloody passion. He and my brother treat me like dirt. Every female in this town is treated like dirt." I scowled. "And I'm getting darned tired of all of it. So I'm going to run away."

Don rubbed his chin. "Where were you planning on going?" he asked.

"South. As far away from this filthy rut as I can get. Why?"

The green fellow shook his head. "No reason. We just have two children traveling with us who don't seem to be up to the task of surviving monsters and that sort of creature. I was kind of hoping to have somebody take them back to their home but we can't spare anybody to do it."

Curiosity won me over. "By the way…where are you going, exactly?"

Don frowned. "I'd rather you not know; there are people around who'd kill us for what we're doing. We're harboring two fugitives."

"Oh, don't worry, I hate the Empire. Like to see it torn down by its ears and kicked in the nuts for all the crimes that Xetyphaes has done," I growled promptly, balling my hands into fists. He shut his eyes for a while, breathing deeply. I'd begun to think he'd dropped off to sleep, but he returned his gaze to me within seconds.

At my questioning glance, he pointed a finger to his head with a lopsided smile and replied, "Mind reading. Just to see if you're trustworthy or not."

I swear, if I could've fallen dead at a comment, that would've been the one to keel over on. "You can read my mind?" I asked incredulously, feeling a bit exposed.

"Well, yes, in a manner of speaking. Although I can see your motives and current thoughts clearly, I can't invade on your memories. Nor would I if I could."

"And…am I trustworthy?"

He nodded an affirmative, relaxing against the wall. "Yep. You're clear," Don said, yawning. I thought of something devious and grinned. _Tell me what undergarments I'm wearing. _His eyes widened in surprise and he blushed crimson with embarrassment. "Oh, now that wasn't fair at all."

I sniggered. "It was pretty funny though." He snorted, apparently thinking otherwise.

A sudden crash rang out from where Raph had stomped to, along with a curse. "Dang it, calm down, ya crazy rabbit!" he yelled. I rushed around the corner to see what the commotion was all about and nearly fell onto the floor, saved by Don's perfect reflexes.

"Thanks," I murmured, straightening. My eyes were locked on the struggling, somewhat delirious rabbit on the bed, whose dark gray fur was wet with sweat. Clinging to his tunic with silver claws was a purple ball of scale and odd obstructions.

A head appeared out of the ball. "Don! Washcloth!" she grunted, pinning the rabbit's ears to the pillow in an attempt to immobilize his head. Don shot for the water-filled pan on the nightstand, snatching a wet, tattered square of blanket from the edge. Belatedly I realized that it was the object I had 'lost' in the stables. With finality, he gently clapped his hand over the rabbit's forehead, rag and all. He calmed down immediately, still muttering feverishly in his sleep. "Phew, why didn't any of us take medical classes?" the purple thing panted, collapsing on the pillow.

Raph got up from the floor, wincing and rubbing his head. "Try the fact that two of us would instantly be strapped to a table for examination and dissection," he retorted, sitting on the corner of the bed and massaging his temples.

I blinked. "That reminds me, what exactly are you?"

The red-eyed guy heaved a grating sigh. "I get so tired of telling these people our species, name, and planet!" he grumbled. "Why not a driver's license or credit card number while you're at it?"

Don supplied the info rather readily. "We're turtles, or chelonians if you prefer. Either one works." As he shifted, I caught sight of a long staff about six feet long strapped to his shell. And a purple bandanna tied around his head.

"Okay, I've got a vague idea of what turtles are," I said. "But, um, never one of your…size."

"Have you ever heard of mutation, Aeki?"

"What, you mean like mutation magic?"

Don scratched his ear. "In a…way. We came about as a chemical accident of sorts." He then proceeded to tell me of how he and his brothers became what they were today.

"Wow. And who's, um, this guy?" I pointed to the still muttering rabbit on the bed. I had heard the mention of a name that I faintly knew when Don shoved Raph to help this…Saesha.

"Dakari Yojimbo."

"So he's one of the two fugitives, I take it?"

"You've heard of him, have you?"

"Oh, sure, the news papers they put up in the Town Square make him out to be a heartless murderer, but I never believe that crap." There was still one question unanswered, however. "Who's the other fugitive?"

"Me!" a purring voice called out. I turned but found nothing to look at except for a slate-gray covey that was staring at me with eerie yellow eyes from atop the dresser. "Yes, me, you're looking at the right person, ding bat."

"Behave, Lharom," Don commanded, sounding a bit amused.

I sat there, bug-eyed. "You're the shape-shifter!"

"Yeah, I am. I would've expected Xetyphaes to keep the news hush-hush, but apparently you know of it." The covey grinned as only a cat can and shifted in his position.

Raph looked up. "Hey, where's Rijinn?"

The purple ball yawned and spread her toes. "Trying to find a suitable spot to hide until we're done here. Orcaine would be all too noticeable if she tried walking into town. So would a riderless teela, so Watishi's outside too. And before you ask, yes, the kids are with them. So, everything's taken care of." It occurred to me that she had wings, which wasn't normal for a lizard. So, the only reasonable explanation would be 'dragon'.

"Are Orcaine and Rijinn dragons?" I ventured.

She puffed a cloud of black smoke and settled her head on her forepaws. "Took you long enough."

Suddenly, Raph got up and crept toward the door. "Oh, shell, some moron went and ratted on us…the cops are right outside the door…" he hissed, whipping out his Sais and backing slowly away from the door. "Get ready, Don…" Lharom shape-shifted into a – _griffin_? I had totally expected him to take the shape of a dragon or something a bit more majestic and big, but sheesh. Okay, I take the comment about the griffin not being big back. He's six feet tall and as long as a six-person dining table. I figure he can take them out in five seconds tops.

"Aeki, Saesha, get Dakari out of here," Don whispered, pulling out his staff as the guards on the other side started pounding on the door with their fists. Lharom hissed and crouched like a feline ready to pounce. Just as I had slung the rabbit's arm over my shoulder, the hinges broke after a particularly hard blow and the door fell down onto the floor with a bang.

A mechanical voice rattled off, "Dakari Yojimbo and Lharom Kahaza, you are under arrest!"

* * *

His scent was getting stronger. I sniffed at the dampened dirt and snorted an invading bug out my nose. There was another smell around him, though…something odd. I know when I saw him last, he had a companion, but his scent was very faint. I coughed out a serulaf's chuckle. And he was unconscious, for reasons my grandfather Shahkar hadn't told me. He seemed embarrassed. To my eyes, he looked absolutely ridiculous, head lolling off his teela. Should I ever find him, I'll mock him for it.

I pawed the ground and sniffed again. But back to that strange smell. It was nearly birdy, if you could call it that. I padded forward, my snout still flat on the ground. A glint of copper on the path in front of me drew my attention. "Shoot, if that's what I think it is…" I muttered under my breath. I padded toward it, looking around suspiciously. Wherever one of these was, there was bound to be trouble. I sniffed the thing and straightened. "Cripes, he's got a phoenix tailing him and he doesn't know it!"

I ran away from the feather, following the heavy footprints of a teela bearing a passenger. Phoenixes were known for their hermit-like behavior, and as a result, got bad reputations because of it. From puppyhood I'd heard stories from my lying brother of them coming down from the sky and snatching one of the serulaf cubs from the pack, taking it up to its mountain nest to eat it. As much as I denied it, it was still imprinted into my instincts. I skirted a scrubby bush, scaring some rodents out of it. My stomach growled as a reminder of my hunger. I ignored it. Having left my pack and tracked this foreigner for a day and a half, there wasn't any way I was stopping now.

Then a revelation hit me. Phoenixes were rather noisy in nature, as their birdcalls could pierce the very soul. So how could he _not _know unless…I cursed and ran further forward. "As luck would have it…" I growled, peering around a shrub and immediately derailing my train of thought. There had been a recent scuffle here, as telltale signs of rolling bodies and footprints said. I cautiously stepped out from behind the bush and snuffled an imprint. Teela. By the looks of it, there had been an ambush. A pack of wild wolfena, for specifics. But…no, this wasn't right. The teela had galloped forward and…disappeared off the face of the earth? So it seemed. _And if I lie, then I'm a buzzard. _

The pawprints stopped right before a ravine, rocky and treacherous in descent. No living animal could survive that fall unless they sprouted wings. _From the looks of it, he has. _The scent of fear that drenched the prints mixed with wolfena blood. I grinned uneasily. _So, he woke up and used his swords. Terrific. _I followed the bloody trail into the tall grass and ran smack dab into a corpse. "Whoa, buddy, you should've crawled into the _ravine_ and died, not decompose here," I grunted, kicking dry dirt over the dead wolfena with my paws. Alright, so the foreigner had killed a few. One, if you want it technical.

But where in the hells did that teela go? Or if my suspicions were correct, a phoenix? Shahkar said he'd heard of phoenixes being able to take the form of an animal that had recently died near their nest if they needed to protect or disguise themselves. "So he may actually be _riding _the liar." I muttered a curse and went back to the scuffle. Looked like either the phoenix had shown itself and bore him up into the sky, or tumbled down into the ravine. I sniffed the ground near the crevice and wagged my long-haired tail gently. So he _had _gone down there. That phoenix must've been a pretty darn sure-footed teela. I know of less-coordinated relatives who would've broken a leg going down into that thing.

I took a deep breath and stepped out onto the first rock, carefully avoiding all cracks and loose pebbles as I went. "This is slow going. Might as well do it the faster, harder way." I crouched and leapt at the wall, bouncing off it and landing on the other side. I kept using them as springboards until I finally arrived at the bottom of the slope. Satisfied, I landed lightly on the floor of the ravine. The waning light of the moon could barely be seen down here, as many spires of rock split the moonbeams into thin strands that barely lit anything. I, however, could care less. A serulaf's eyes are as good as any covey's when it comes to night vision.

Deftly, I slipped around a jagged boulder and padded further into the death trap. Yes, a death trap, now I find out. The air in here was dank and smelly, for lack of wind going through to remove the stench. And as such there probably is a dead end. So finding the foreigner and that phoenix would be easy, if he didn't already know of his tagalong and attempted to slice it with his swords. I came to a part of the ravine where a crevice opened up in the ground and the only way around it was a precarious ledge on the left side. No problem, I had a good sense of balance. I smirked, thinking of my mother. _She_, however, claims that one day when I'm with puppy, the males will go tip me over for fun and I wouldn't be able to get up. Yeah, right. When ruris fly. I make a point not to get in any relationships with males. They're morons without brains, that's what I think. Always trying so hard to impress and woo the other ladies. _Pah. They're all gonna go in the loony bin. _

I trotted along the ledge easily, scenting the air for my target. My gray fur bristled slightly. The phoenix wasn't rank with teela stench now! "Crap, I'm gonna eat it for this…or maybe he'll eat the foreigner, I dunno…" The reason I kept referring to the rider as foreigner was because I hadn't a clue what he was christened with. Oh well. I cursed again and loped down a gentle slope, veering around a sharp corner. I halted in shock.

Laying on the ground was the green fellow, asleep and not showing any signs of waking. Beside him was the phoenix! He looked up innocently enough, and blinked his amber eyes. _Please don't make too much noise, he's quite tired, _the bird told me in mind speech.

"Oh really, I was under the impression that you were planning on _eating _him," I growled back, advancing slowly.

_You're no more trustworthy than myself, _he pointed out, shifting on black talons. _It'd appear to me that _you _are the hungry one._

I snorted. "Why are you deceiving him like this?"

The phoenix stared at me and ruffled his copper colored tail feathers. _To protect him. Do you think he'd see me the same way if I were in this form? Preposterous. I'm only watching over him, as is my companion to the rabbit._

"What?" I whispered, dangerously low.

He settled down next to the green fellow's head. _She's an icunix from my clan, and one of my best allies. She and I noticed that these two were like chicks without parents, wandering around without protection. She consented to keep watch over the samurai while I did him. _Then he stared at me. _And why're _you _here?_

"I was tracking him. I'm growing bored of the constant saving of the captives in that rukit village and decided to run after this one. I needed adventure, phoenix."

_I understand. But you may find too much danger here._

"Oh, yeah, like I can't take care of myself," I sneered.

He sighed. _You're only a juvenile of your kind, precious and few in the serulaf clan from which you hail._

"Where's your family, and why are you out here?" I growled venomously.

_I believe I've already answered the second question. As for the first…if you must know, my wife and chicks died from famine. _He was so blunt, it hurt. My throat tightened as I sat down.

"…Sorry…"

_It's alright. Kadi's a friend you can only dream for. Loyal as a wolfena to the wounded pup, and fierce as Aireilei of the First Age._

"Excuse me? Aireilei?"

He lifted his head a bit higher. _How old are you…_

"Tahkar. And I'm almost nineteen. Why?"

_Ah. I wouldn't expect you to know of Aireilei, then. _

"Humor me."

_Aireilei was a dragon, but not one that walked on four limbs, mind you. Early on in her life, she was mutated by a rukit mage near the Wompag forest. Taken under King Fridarus' wing at a young age, she flourished into the best archer and elemental mage this world has ever known._

"So she died, then?"

The phoenix chittered, amused. _No, no, dragons are immortal if left alone. They cannot be killed except through magical means or by the sword._

I wrinkled my snout. "So, what happened to her, then?"

_She left Haradris for a millenium. Her mother wished to protect her from Xetyphaes' evil and so sent her to a watery planet in the galaxy called The Milky Way._

"What a ridiculous name."

_Ah, but there's more. This Milky Way was so far from here, our galaxy of Andromeda, that Xetyphaes never found her until quite recently. I believe she has returned._

"Wait, she's a dragon!" I said, lashing my tail. "Didn't the inhabitants want to kill her?"

The phoenix smiled, as if he had just been told a joke. _Of course not, they could never kill one of their own kind! You see, many races of creatures called humans inhabit Earth. They wear strange garments and sometimes wear armor, but that was back in darker days. Their machinery is far more advanced than our own. Rainbou had the foresight to ask Niracan to transform her daughter into one of them. Aireilei endured the years as a fifteen year-old girl under many names, living in many countries of that planet. When she had stayed too long in one place, she would be transported to another. Her life went on like this until by chance, she came across one of Rainbou's five last children. _

My head was spinning. Why hadn't grandpa Shahkar told me this? Perhaps shame of some other event? "Who was it?" I asked, entranced.

_Icusi of the water element. Her siblings were soon gathered by new companions, four chelonian mutants who would've been experimented on had they revealed themselves. For they were different, and their world doesn't like different unless it can kill it, stuff it, and put it on display for the world to see. And that is where her story on Earth ended, and this one began._

"How do you know all this?"

He closed his eyes. _A friend informed me of their progress. Have you heard of the shape-shifter named Lharom Kahaza?_

"Nope. Just another bum to me."

He looked disapprovingly at me. _Does your pack tell you nothing? Ah well, he was by chance in the Dream Realms of the Earth when he encountered three dragon children: Icusi, Eyayedi, and Tiiney. To their companions, however, they are known as Bima, Iwansi, and Saesha. He helped them along to the care of Lord Simultaneous where they communicated with the man who captured them for a thousand years. They were concerned for Aireilei, because as a human, she had begun reverting to her old form and hadn't a clue what was going on. Her memory had been erased, you see, so she would be further protected from harm. She was frightened, Tahkar._

I sighed and rested my head on my paws. "Yeah, well I'm still a bit suspicious of you guarding that green guy."

_You haven't a need. Now, Lharom informed my brood of this development soon after they left the Dream Realms, and also of her life as a wanderer. He kept her safe all those years, taking the forms of animals she would trust. He kept her warm in the coolness of night in the desert realm of Egypt as a cat. He was a lemur in the rainforest called the Amazon. He guarded her tent as a camel in the nomadic land of the Sahara. He defended her from wolves in the dangerous but beautiful land of Alaska as a grizzly bear. He kept her company in the cold region of Siberia as a wolf. He transported her across the plains as an Indian paint horse. He hid her from those who would enslave her as a lion in Africa. He amused her as a squirrel in the American colonies when she was sad. He fought off those who would hurt her as a malamute dog by her school. He protected her from wild dogs as a Shetland pony in England. So you see, Lharom has had a large part in her life._

"So, Aireilei's back to kick Pastey's butt?" I asked, excitedly. "And this green dude is one of the guys who helped her?"

_Correct. Haven't you noticed the dragons' effect on him?_

"No, should I have?"

The phoenix got up and waddled around to the creature's rear. _Come here, quietly, so you don't wake him. He's had a very trying day. _I crawled to where he was and saw a coiled green tail on the ground, twitching every now and then.

"Wow, that's a weird tail." I was referring to the fan tipping it.

_No more strange than your own, Tahkar. And he also bears the ears and mark of the wind dragon, Seiney, or to his friends who haven't encountered the elvish language, Kiyo._

"And that was the history lesson for the day," I grunted. "When he wakes up, I'm coming with you, got it?"

"When I wake up?" somebody mumbled sleepily.

_Jhadie, I was hoping for him to slumber a bit more._

The green man sat up and immediately noticed me by his tail. "How'd you get here?" he asked, still a bit groggy from sleep.

"I _walked._" The phoenix snickered softly, drawing his attention from me to him.

He blinked. "And who are you?" he asked, looking around.

_My own clan calls me Hytis, but you know me by another name._

"I do?"

_Yes. Tunali._

I could've laughed at the look of disbelief on his face. "You're Tunali?"

_I think you ought to sleep a bit more. Your thoughts are clouded with weariness._

"Weariness my foot," I grunted, snorting. "I saw that wolfena, he beheaded it. You think somebody dead tired could've slashed right through that neck? For the love of my non-existent mane, you'd have to have a mighty strong arm for that. Believe me, I've eaten those buggers before. You're considered something of a legend if you can bite through that in one snap and not break your teeth."

Hytis smiled and uttered a pure cry that sounded like a flute. _Sleep, Leonardo. I and Tahkar shall keep watch._

"Hm, no, we have to keep moving," Leo muttered, getting up. "We have to find Dakari."

_He isn't dead, if that's what you're thinking._

Leo looked up and stared at the phoenix, clearly disbelieving the statement. "I don't believe you. That night was the worst I've ever seen. I'm surprised even _I _lived."

_You live because I dove in after you, as did Kadi after Dakari. However, during the rescue, we were separated, which is why they aren't here with us. I do know where they are, though. _Leo raised his eye ridge. _They're with two of your brothers. Lharom also resides with them, along with three dragons._

"That's good news," Leo said, obviously feeling relief. "But why are there three dragons? I know for a fact that Saesha and Rijinn wouldn't abandon Raph and Don for any reason. And I'm pretty sure Kiyo got snatched by Aireilei and Mikey, so…"

_Her name is Orcaine, and she has only recently just come out of a deep sleep inside an elven crystal. Her mate travels with Aireilei at the moment._

I sat there for a minute and then got on my feet. "Well, I for one, am tired of sitting here. Can we go now?" Hytis also stood. At his full height, he was as tall as Leo.

_Hm, yes, we might as well. I'll take teela form again so as not to unnerve other travelers. _There was a soft flash of red light and Tunali stood before us once again. This time, however, he couldn't mind-speak.

I smirked. "Silent, just the way I like you." At that moment, a clatter of rock on rock echoed down the ravine. "Am I the only one who heard that?" I muttered, perking my bear-like ears forward.

Leo took out a sword. "No, I did too. It's hard not to with these things," he said, pointing at a green ear. I grinned and let forth a warning growl. Something a bit more sinister returned it and Tunali shifted nervously.

"What're you scared of, you're probably bigger than whatever's coming around the corner!" The teela-phoenix shook his head and stamped. "Chicken," I egged. Leo smiled and unsheathed another sword.

"Get ready, we're going to jump it in five…four…three…two…one…"

* * *

"Daddy, can I go outside and play now?" I asked, hopping up and down. "Please, daddy, I've been helping mommy all morning!"

He smiled fondly at me and put his hand on my head, ruffling my brown hair. "Alright, little girl, but don't go too far from the house."

"Yay!" I squealed, dashing for the door. Once I was outside, I ran for the flower field. The little plants glowed at me with their bright colors as I fell into them, giggling. "Hello, Mr. Bug, how are you?" I asked a little beetle. He looked at me strangely before skittering off into the grass. "Okay, bye, we'll talk later!" I stood up and waded further into the flowers, carefully folding my arms so my wings wouldn't flatten them.

I played like that for hours, slowly going toward the forest without my knowledge. Soon, I was in deep. "Daddy?" I whimpered, trudging around in the roots and dirt. "Daddy, I'm scared…" A rustle behind me made me scream and I ran. I tripped over a root and fell flat on my face. "Owie, that hurt, Mr. Root!" I scolded, temporarily forgetting my fear. Then I saw them. Huge paws with black pointy things on them. I looked up and froze. It was a big doggy! And he looked hungry…"Daddy!" I screamed, hopping up and running to who knows where.

The big doggy growled and sprinted after me, stopping me in my tracks before a big tree. It licked its lips with a big pink tongue and slowly opened its mouth. "Daddy…" I sheltered my head with my wings. I could feel its hot breath on my skin. "Help me!"

Mikey looked up. "Hey, did you just hear a scream, Kiara?" he whispered.

She perked her ears forward and frowned. "Yeah, sounded like a little kid."

Another high-pitched scream reached them. "Help me, daddy!" Mikey pulled out his nunchucks and darted off into the black trees, followed by his companion.

I first felt the doggy bite my arm and it hurt a lot! Really hot red water dripped from my wing as I cried. "That hurts, doggy, let go!" I tried to get my arm out of its pointy white mouth but I couldn't. Then the doggy let go, and somebody else yelled.

"Back off, dude, leave the kid alone!" The doggy growled at him as he picked me up.

"Daddy?" I whimpered, burying my head in his hard chest. The next thing I saw was a really strong lady cut the doggy in the neck with her big long knifes.

"It's alright, kiddo, we gotcha," the man said.

"I want my daddy…"

"What do you think, Kiara? Where'd she come from?"

The lady wiped her knifes on the doggy's fur. "Aireilei said she saw signs of a village nearby. Maybe from there," She muttered, sticking her knifes in two long things.

The man sighed and petted my head. "We wouldn't have time to bring her back, Kiara."

"Well, what else do you suggest we do? Take her along? Hah. We've got a merry enough band as it is. A traitor, a vengeful gunghir, and dragons. No, I don't think we should take her along. Besides, her parents would get worried."

"Aw, but I love kids!" the man pouted, bouncing me up and down.

"Mike, you're just going to have to take her back. I'll tell Bima that you'll be back soon."

"Phooey," Mike grunted. The lady left. "So, kiddo, which way is your house?"

I thought. "I don't know, mister. I got lost."

"Well, we'll just have to fix that, won't we?" somebody else growled.

Mike looked around. "Oh shell…" A whole bunch of guys had surrounded us and were pointing arrows at Mike!

* * *

Yep, I know Mikey's was short, and I know I'm not good at writing little kids, so sue me. Anyway, I hope this chapter turned out good, I've been working on it for two weeks...yes, kill me for the slow update...Please review if you're not! Reviews make the world go 'round!

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


	13. Spectacular Save, Aireilei!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. Never have, and there's a 99.999999912 chance that I never will. Phooey.

A/N: The majority of this chapter has been taken up by Mikey's segment. That's only because I had a magnificent brainstorm and started writing it all down. And the tome of a chapter is the fruits of my labor! Enjoy!

**13.**

Mike nervously looked around. The child whimpered in his arms and grabbed the edge of his plastron in fright. "What reason do you have for harming a defenseless little girl?" the leader growled from behind his bow, eyes and face hidden beneath a dark green hood.

"Um, hello! Do you guys see the dead…" He went with his finger to point out the carcass of the dead wolfena, but to his dismay, it wasn't there any more! "Shell. Where'd that bugger go?" He still noticed all the arrows trained on him. "Look, guys, how could I draw blood?" he asked with a scowl. "I've got _these_!" With one hand, he carefully pulled out a nunchuck. "Pieces of wood! Get it?"

"That may be so, but what were you doing in this forest in the first place?" the leader said, not lowering his arrow.

"I'm traveling. Why else would I go in this dank and smelly pit of mush?"

The girl clinging to his chest looked up at the turtle. "Are they gonna hurt you, mister?" she asked naively.

Mikey petted her head. "'S okay, kiddo, I've been shot with an arrow before. Except that one hurt like _shell…_"

The leader of the group fell silent for a moment or two. "Give me the child, now."

"Look, bub, I'm not giving her to anybody but her own daddy, alright?"

"Give her to me or become a living pin cushion!" he snarled, loosening his grip on the arrow.

Mike crouched, rebelliously flattening his yellow ears to his skull. "Sorry, no can do. I'm getting there myself and I don't need your help." The leader's eyes flashed. "Besides, what's one more arrow in my chest?" he said casually, watching the other guys' movements of uneasiness. "You aren't Aireilei, so you probably couldn't even make me grunt when it hits."

The leader growled. "Stick him, boys!"

Mike jumped up with a squeal, all manner of bravado gone, avoiding the arrows and grabbing a tree branch. "No-no-no-no-no! I…Eeep, watch you're shooting those things!" he cried as three flew past him and into a trunk. "Ho boy, Mikey, you're in for it now!" He fell to the ground and dashed through the forest, ducking whistling arrows and hopping over tree roots. "Why me?" he moaned, shifting his burden to under his arm.

The girl cried out suddenly. "Owie, that hurts!"

From behind, he heard an angry shout. "You fool! You shot the girl!" Mike cursed and stopped briefly to check his passenger. She was doing her best not to cry, but it looked painful. The arrow had embedded itself in her wing arm, the one that hadn't been bitten.

"Are you guys insane!" he bellowed down the path, ducking a few more projectiles. "You could've killed her!" At that moment, one buried itself in his right calf, sending a wave of pain up his leg. "Aw, crap, I don't wanna die Boromir's death!" He climbed up a gnarled tree to rest, finding himself cornered. "Well, kid, it looks like we're caught, eh?" he panted. "Here, lemme get that thing out for you…be a trooper and bear the pain, 'kay? It'll only hurt a sec…" Mikey gingerly grabbed the shaft of the arrow and deftly yanked it out. Despite her obvious efforts to stay quiet, she still let out a whimper.

"There you are." The turtle was staring down the shaft of another arrow. "Come down and I won't kill you." Mikey grunted, deceivingly getting up into a jumping position, and braced the girl on his plastron so she could grip the edge and hold on tighter. _The hunter thinks he has the hunted, but I've got a few tricks hidden up my tail._ He gathered himself for a giant leap and sprang out of the tree, grabbing a nearby branch with his tail and swinging off it.

"There he goes again!" somebody yelled as he landed on the ground and shot off like a bullet.

"Jhadie, keep chase! Get him!"

The turtle smiled grimly, ignoring the hot blood coursing down his leg. There'd be no avoiding them now; they could track him using the trail he left. He accidentally miscalculated a step and whacked his injured leg against a tree, sending waves of pain up through his torso. "Ouch, if Raph could see me now! Yikes!" An arrow whizzed past him into the dark, loamy soil. "C'mon, Mike, you're a ninja, think!"

His pace was slowing down noticeably, despite his efforts to keep sprinting. "Oh, dang it, Iwansi, where are you?" he grunted, hopping nimbly over a stream and landing heavily on the rocks on the other side. The pain coming from his leg was excruciating. "Yeow!" he squeaked, feeling another arrow bite him, this time in the left upper arm. "Geez, people, I'm not rubber! I've got nerves too!"

"Got him!" one of the hunters cried jubilantly.

"Bring him down, I don't care how you do it, bring him down!" the leader roared.

Several more arrows flew past him as he rounded a corner. "This sucks! This sucks, this sucks, this SUCKS!" he grumbled. (A/N: Chibi, recognize that from anywhere?) The girl nestled in his right arm was crying. "It'll be okay, kid, don't you worry! Your Uncle Mikey's gonna get you outta here!"

"I want my daddy!" she sobbed. "It's scary in here! And my arm hurts!"

"Hang on tight, babe, I'm gonna jump!" Her grip tightened as he vaulted over a ravine and landed somewhat painfully on the other side. "Stupid arrows…I can't move around – Whoa!" He sidestepped an arrow just in time. "Man, too close!"

"Get him, he's stopped!" the leader shouted.

"Yeah, says you, Strider!" Mikey shot back, starting off again. "Oh boy, I can't keep this up…" He ran as fast as he could, but it wasn't fast enough. They were gaining ground. "Shoot, how can I lose them?"

_Mikey!_

"Wah!" he cried in surprise, tripping over a root and falling flat on his face. "Owch, gimme a warning next time you yell, Aireilei!" He got up with lightning speed and dashed again. "You nearly got me killed!"

_Shut up and listen, Robin Hood. Where are you?_

"You of all people should know!" he grunted, ducking more arrows and jumping over a tree root.

_No, I don't. Kiara just came back and said you had disappeared from where she left you. I can hear bow shots from where I'm flying. Did you get hit?_

"Twice by Prince Jon and his rabble of followers," he grunted, feeling the pain renew.

_Ouch. _

"And how am I supposed to know where I am? These dudes are trying to _kill _me! It's not like I've got time to admire the scenery!"

Okay, Mikey, I've got a plan. Keep going the way you are- 

"I can't turn either, so what's the use of telling me that?"

_Look, shut _up _and let me talk! _she growled impatiently. _You'll come across a stream if you keep going straight. Follow it downstream to the river it feeds and follow the river to a waterfall. When you get there, wait for my signal. Then- _The communication was abruptly cut off and Mike was left alone.

"Aw, shell, great time to cut off the line!" he moaned, coming across the stream. It came out of a gnarled mass of roots, across the path, and into a thicket. "Man, as if I don't have enough problems!" He was beginning to feel a bit lightheaded from the pain and blood loss.

As an incentive to keep him going, another arrow whizzed out and hit him, again in the same arm. He cursed loudly and jumped into the bushes. "Where in the hells is he going!" a hunter yelled.

"The waterfall! He'll be cornered there, keep chase!" the leader commanded.

Mike snagged the feather fletching on the arrow in his leg on a tangled bush, sending bolts of agony up his nerves. "Perfect!" he growled, yanking the arrow out of his leg and leaving it there. "Aireilei never told me I'd run into a dead end! I'm dead meat!" The child in his arm sniffled.

"Are we gonna die, mister?" she asked innocently, a tremble in her voice.

He gritted his teeth as he sighted the river, a wide azure expanse of water. "Not on my watch, kiddo! Not in a million yearsam I gonna die!" He darted along the pebbly shoreline of the river, the pounding of his feet making his wounds throb. A distant roar filled the air. Mist started appearing at the end of the river, proof that the falls were coming. Suddenly, a heavy force pushed his shell and he lost his footing on a slippery rock, falling into the rapids.

The water filled his yellow ears as he fought to surface. With a gasp, he broke the surface and held the girl over the water so she could breath. "Shell, this sucks!" he panted, pumping his legs to keep above the roiling water. "Just perfect, why can't I ever leave the helpless alone?" The shore whizzed by at light speed, so fast he could barely keep his bearings.

"Hang on, kid, we're getting outta here!" He placed the child on the upper edge of his carapace, where she readily grabbed his ears with her two fingers. With both arms free, he began powerfully swimming toward the shore. He didn't seem to be making any progress, though; the current was far too strong. "Geez," he grunted, changing to a different tactic. He stretched his toes out for the riverbed but couldn't seem to touch. "I always liked Indiana Jones, but I never wanted to die _his _death! Great, just great!"

A wave tossed him over a boulder and underwater again. It was so sudden that he accidentally inhaled some water. When he surfaced again, he choked it out. "You okay, kid?" he coughed.

She, also, was spewing water. "I think so, Mister! But water went up my nose and it hurt…" The little gunghir snorted more spray out her nose.

"You're a real trooper, kiddo! Hang on a bit longer!" Mike's arms and tail were starting to ache from swimming, and the arrows weren't helping much.

"Mister, I see a branch!"

Mike looked up. Sure enough, right over the falls was a scraggly tree, stripped of its leaves and branches dragging in the rapid flow. "Alright, I'm gonna try and grab it when we go over the waterfall, okay?" he yelled. The child tightened her death grip on his ears so that every sound had a weird distortion to it. The turtle took a deep breath and reluctantly began swimming with the current. His progress was frighteningly fast and before long he was thrown into midair at the edge. He grabbed for the branch and caught a twig that surprisingly held his weight when gravity tried to pull him down. He was scared even to breathe for fear it would snap.

Gingerly, he raised his wounded arm, which still had the arrows imbedded in it, and gripped a stronger part of the tree. It held. "Phew, that was a close shave, huh?" he exhaled with relief. The child didn't answer, and Mike guessed it was because she was paralyzed with fear. "Hoo boy…" The dull roar of the waterfall drowned out whatever else he had to say. In that moment, the leader of the hunter's appeared over the branch. "Shell. You again," Mike grumbled. The guy held out his hand and motioned for the kid on his head. "No way no how, dude. You want her, you'll have to pry her off my dead body. I told you, the only person I'm gonna give her to is her own Pops!"

Coldly, the leader nocked an arrow on his bow. "Then you will die."

"I've had brushes with death before, Little John," Mike retorted. "And an arrow doesn't scare me one bit. So do your worst, you fat old bear!"

"I'll give you one last chance to live. Give me the girl."

"Oh yeah? You tell me something: what the shell do you want her for, because I'm reading your mind right now and I see something I don't like."

His bow didn't move. "I suppose I wouldn't hurt to tell you, since you're about to die." Mike stuck his tongue out tauntingly. At that moment, a gust of wind blew his hood back and the kid on his head screamed.

"You are quite possibly the ugliest thing I've ever laid eyes on," Mike stated, a bit horrified but determined not to show it. He added another comment to conceal his surprise. "Besides the Garbage dude." It was a mouse brown rukit, but so mutilated one couldn't tell from first glance. His muzzle had been smashed into his face from some old encounter, making him look like the Pug of Haradris. A wide slash mark from wolfena paws ran down the left side of his face, stopping at a ripped-open cheek that revealed his chipped teeth. Harsh scars crisscrossed his face and one of his ears was in tatters. The other was gone completely. Deathly honey yellow eyes peered out from beneath unkempt eyebrows.

He grinned, an even scarier sight than seeing him frown. "Coming from one who's half dragon such as yourself, you're not too pretty either." The kid whimpered and inched down behind Mike's head, trying to get out his eerie eyes' gaze.

"Yeah, well my face ain't ripped open, pal," Mike retorted, pointing at him with his tail. "And before your fearsome mug was revealed to the world, didn't you have something to say, King of the Uglies?"

"You're too daring for your own good, dragon kin. I knew I should've tipped those arrows with sedative."

"Getting back to my question, King Ugly: what use would a kid of her age be to you? Are you gonna eat her or something?"

He chuckled. "Amusing, but no. She has something of use to me. Something that will put me in Xetyphaes' favor."

"What's that? A dental plan?" he shot back.

He started laughing raucously. Actually laughing. "You're funny, I'll give you that, but your pathetic insults won't do you any good."

"Except make you angry, Ugly Man."

"The girl has the potential to become an insanely powerful wind mage. Didn't you notice in the forest, nearly all the arrows missed you?" Mike nodded guardedly. "That's because she felt the need to protect you arise in her instincts, and so unknowingly blew them away." The turtle whistled. "The ones that hit you were the ones she didn't notice. She has an awareness of what goes on around her that would be deadly if she were to come across the rebels and join them. So, I must eliminate all that protect her and then bring her to my master for training as a mage under his command. And that includes you, who stupidly defended her from my wolfena."

Mike sneered. "If you kill me, you'll be killing her."

"Stop that false bravado, dragon kin. Do you think I would've bothered to push you in the river if I knew you'd grab the branch? I have my ways of saving that which is precious." He lowered his bow and rummaged around in a bag near his waist, pulling out a grappling hook and rope. "I'm an expert with this. Use your imagination."

"Oh, I'm usin' it and right now, my imagination's kickin' yours." Mentally, he cried out, _Aireilei! I need help, I'm gonna die I'm gonna die…_He kept the chant going on and on as the rukit picked up his bow and arrow again, keeping his face devoid of fear.

"And since you seem so bent on returning this child to her parents, I'll tell you something." He grinned, an extremely horrific sight. "They're dead. I killed them when the girl was safely inside the forest." Mikey went cold with rage. "Now then, goodbye, and have a great time in Hela." The turtle gritted his teeth as the rukit sighted down the shaft and prepared to release it. _At least I'll die for a good cause…_

Several things happened at once. The girl on his shell hopped nimbly back onto his head and screamed with anger just as the rukit loosed his arrow. The gunghir kid let fly gusts from her fingers, causing the arrow's path to angle up and bury itself in Mikey's hand. The turtle valiantly tried to hang on but lost his grip and fell into the mists, clutching the girl in his arms. A white form dove from the sky, roaring her fury.

From above, ivory flames incinerated the mutilated rukit, leaving a pile of ashes where he had knelt on the pebbles. Streaming smoke out her nostrils, Aireilei shot down into the mist. After a few seconds, she emerged with a wounded Michelangelo in her arms, and a severely shaken three year-old gunghir perched on her horns. Aireilei cursed profusely as she landed on the shore.

"Jhadie, Mike, I'm so sorry," she growled, laying him on the ground and kneeling beside him. The sun cast a cloud's shadow on them both, shielding them from Her heat. "I should've found you sooner…" He grinned weakly, almost said something, and passed out from pain and blood loss. The little gunghir fell down from atop her head and crawled to the turtle, whimpering. Finding him not moving, she let out a sob and fell onto his unmarred right hand, clutching it and talking in her own language. "You did good, kiddo," the dragon consoled, stroking her head. "I'm proud of you. Now, let's get those wings fixed up, shall we?"

She resisted Aireilei, crying for 'Mister' and keeping her grip on his limp hand. "No, lemme go, Mister's hurt!" she sobbed.

"Shhh, c'mere, I'm going to make your owies all better," she whispered soothingly, prying her off Mike's hand and holding her up in the air. The little child's skirt was now almost non-existent and beginning to look like a loincloth. It probably would've suited the girl better, too, for she was small for her age, almost the size of Iwansi. Scratch that, she could _ride _Iwansi. Aireilei chuckled, thinking of her sister bearing the girl like a princess. The arrow wound in her wing had begun to crust over a bit and the bite on her other arm was deep and coursing blood. "You poor kid," she mumbled. "That must've hurt. Hang on, you can get back to Uncle Mikey in a minute." The white dragon muttered a few words in elvish and the child's flesh began knitting back together. Before Aireilei could finish, however, the girl blew her hands apart with wind and crawled back to Mike's hand.

"Boy, you _are _pretty strong, kid," she said, surprised. "But you need healing, so come back here." Aireilei attempted healing several times more, but every time, before she had finished, the girl would blow out of her hands and go back to her only consolation, Mike's hand. Finally, the dragon gave up. "You're determined, I'll give you that, kiddo," she muttered. "But I_will _finish this, you mark my words." The girl scowled and clutched her makeshift security blanket all the tighter.

"Aireilei!"

The white dragon looked up and saw Bima running towards her. The silvery-blue dragon had made a spectacular recovery from her mortal wounds, now only scarred and missing wings, half of her right ear and three fourths of her tail. "Help me, Bima!"

She scowled when she reached Mike. "Good golly, what happened?" Her eyes went from shock to absolute rage. "Where's the guy that did this? I'll…I'll…"

"You can do what you want to his ashes." Aireilei pointed at the pile of feather-light remains that was fast being carried away on the wind. "Or you can hunt down his cronies and burn them too, but that'd endanger the forest," the white dragon stated bluntly.

"Darn you to hell, Lady Fate!" Bima snarled, clawing the ground in her fury.

A sudden whimper from the little girl drew their attention. "Mister needs help, he's got big splinners in his arm!" She crawled up Mike's forearm and grabbed one of the arrow shafts, weakly pulling on it. The unconscious turtle visibly hitched his airflow whenever she renewed her efforts.

"Hang on, you little trooper," Aireilei said, gently lifting the girl off Mike's arm. She fought like a demon, blowing gusts everywhere and nearly knocking Bima off her feet.

The silvery-blue dragon's anger vanished with surprise. "Holy smokes, that's one powerful gale you've got going there!"

Aireilei struggled with her, trying to keep the child in her hands. "Slippery as an eel, this one!" The white dragon growled. "Hold _still_!" Bima gently took the kid in her paws and pinned her to the ground.

"Now, you hang tight, kiddo, Auntie Aireilei's got to make Uncle Mike all better, okay? She doesn't need you getting in the way…what? Why're you looking at me like that?" she scowled, seeing her companion hide a smile.

"_Auntie_ Aireilei?"

"Well, what about it?"

She grinned. "Oh, nothing, just thinking you'd make a lovely nanny."

"Hah. And you'd make a lovely target for flying reject mustard packets from Jack-In-The-Box. Shut up." She wrestled with the girl, who was steadily wriggling out of her grasp. "Geez, kid, can't you be away from your Uncle Mikey for five minutes?"

"Name's not Meki, it's Mister!" the girl growled from beneath Bima's belly.

The dragon smirked. "No, say it with me: Mie-kee."

"Meki," she ground out, still wriggling like a fish.

"Mie-kee."

"MEKI."

Aireilei chuckled. "And now, Hooked On Phonics with instructor Bima."

"I thought I told you to can it, _Auntie _Aireilei," Bima growled, pouncing on the girl when she happened to get out of her grasp. The white dragon rolled her eyes and carefully extracted the two arrows left in Mike's arm, making the turtle cringe in his uneasy slumber. After checking him for any embedded arrowheads, she promptly began glowing a soft white. The blood flaked off his scaly skin, and halted flowing from his arm. Muscle and skin knitted together over the wound, leaving a barely noticeable scar. She did the same with his other arm and his calf.

"Hey, are you done yet?" Bima said. "I'm having trouble keeping this little fish in one place."

"You can let her go now," Aireilei responded with a nod. Once released, the girl made a beeline for Mike's hand and clamped onto it like a tick. "Wow, such devotion for somebody she's only just met."

The child ignored them and closed her eyes, pillowing her head on the turtle's palm. "She's so naïve, it isn't hard to see why she loves him so much. He just about got killed back there. Defending her from a wild dog that could've easily eaten him too, defiant when surrounded by archers training their arrows on him, getting shot three times, falling into the rapids and nearly going over a waterfall…Lives a dangerous life, this one."

"So do you. What's your point?" Bima grunted in response.

"What do you think her name is, Aireilei?"

"I dunno, you mind read her."

Bima made a face. "Oh, that'd be painful. Considering how jumbled the mind of a toddler usually is…alright, I'll do it…sheesh." The dragon immediately delved into her mind reading ability, stretching out her consciousness until it connected with the girl's.

"Well?" Aireilei asked when Bima resurfaced.

"Palaesi."

The white dragon looked puzzled. "Only the elves would consent to name a child that. She couldn't have had parents with such knowledge of elvish."

"What's it mean?"

"Gale, or in full context, Stormy Gale, if used with the other name that goes with it. Of course, with her magic prowess, it's easy to see why."

Bima looked at the now sleeping child. "Palaesi, eh?"

"Aye."

* * *

At that moment, Lharom leapt forward with an ear-renting scream and lashed out with his claws, catching the first guard in the gut and ripping his bowels out. The griffin savagely threw the unfortunate victim into the wall. With another raptor call, he lunged and seized another's head in his beak, crushing it and dropping it on the floor.

"Aeki, run!" Don bellowed, charging into the hallway past Lharom and bringing his staff down on the captain of the regiment. He blocked it with his sword and caught the other blow when the turtle maneuvered his Bo around his sword in an attempt to smack the rukit in the side. Aeki scowled and made as if to pursue him into the fray, but one glare from Raph made her quail and turn toward the window, dragging Dakari with her. The rabbit moaned, planting his feet.

"What…" he began in a hoarse voice, but Saesha lifted him with telepathy, effectively cutting off his question, and carefully brought him through the window and down.

"You aren't lifting _me_," Aeki declared vehemently, diving out the window and landing in the bush outside.

Meanwhile, Raph had whipped out his Sais and joined the melee with Don, jabbing and thrusting with the atrocity of a viper. "Eat this!" he growled, powerfully kicking a rukit in the stomach and sending him into the wall. He ducked a slash from Lharom and continued whirling like a dervish. "How you doing, Don?" he grunted, blocking a downward hack from another opponent.

Don geared up for a thrust, dodged a slash from the captain. "Not too BAD." His last word was emphasized with the impact of his Bo in the captain's solid chest plate. "Yikes!" The turtle barely sidestepped a deadly jab with the sword and jumped up, feinting a vertical blow. At the last second, he brought it in and crouched on the floor, doing a swift three-sixty. His staff hit home, bringing the captain down, his legs knocked out from under him. Don quickly stood and dealt the rukit a firm smack over the head, effectively knocking him out.

Lharom's battle was more bloody. He backed away from a spear-wielding rukit, watching the guy's face contort in a smirk. "Gotcha now, you joke of a shape-shifter," he crowed, needling the griffin in the paw. He roared and changed into a wolfena, promptly leaping forward and crushing his head in powerful jaws. By this time, only a few stragglers were left, and they skittered away, skirting corpses and barely withholding the hysterical screams of terror bubbling up inside them.

"That was fun," Raph grunted, jabbing his Sais back in his belt.

"Then your idea of fun must be skewed by the insanity you harbor deep down in that shell of yours," Don remarked, putting his Bo into its holster and ignoring the fiery glare he received from his brother. "They've gone to get reinforcements no doubt. We need to escape."

The hothead growled a challenge. "Let 'em come, I can take them all down!"

Don eyed him. "You know, that isn't at all healthy to be thinking. Come on, let's get out of here." He did an about face into the room, looking around for anything they might've left.

Lharom limped up beside him. "Don't you dare forget those katanas. Dakari would kill me."

"Provided he can even comprehend what we tell him in his state." The wolfena grunted in reply and grabbed the swords, sheaths and all, in his teeth. Distant clinks of armor came from in front of the inn. "Let's go, they're going to surround the building if we wait any longer." And with that, he sprinted for the window, whipped out his Bo, smashed what was left of the window, and hopped nimbly out into the coolness of night. Raph followed, along with a less graceful Lharom, who had been burdened with the katanas. In that, he had to angle his head at an odd position to get out of the room.

Then, he dropped the swords and shifted into his griffin form. "Everybody on, let's go!" Raph scrambled on without complaint, but Aeki, who was less compliant when it came to straddling a giant bird-lion's back, had to be thrown on. The griffin allowed Don to hop on before launching himself into the sky, tailed by Saesha, who was keeping the feverish Dakari aloft with her telepathy.

"That was close," Don observed, looking back down on the inn, which was now an anthill of mayhem. Shouts and shocked yells rent the air, along with several crashes. "Don't you think so, Raph?"

He got no reply for a while. "Don't…make me look down there, Donnie," he groaned. "You know I hate flying."

Aeki stretched. "_I _think it's wonderful. I've never flown before."

"Yeah, well if I had my way, I'd ban flying!" This was accompanied by an 'oh shell' and a retching sound. "Crap," he growled weakly. Aeki chuckled at his expense.

"Hey, watch where you're barfing your guts!" Saesha called from below. "You nearly got me!"

Raph leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Lharom's neck for stability. "Oh, what a shame I missed," he lamented, his heart clearly not in it.

When they finally landed on the outer edge of the forest, Orcaine was waiting. "What did you guys do to get kicked out so early?" she scolded.

"You know what, shut up," Raph growled, sliding off Lharom's back. His mouth clapped shut, courtesy of Saesha.

"Don't talk to her that way, scoundrel," the purple dragon hissed as he slumped in defeat.

Orcaine grinned. "It's quite alright. I never got this much cheek from my mate when we were together, so it's refreshing." Saesha grunted and set Dakari down. "Still running a fever, eh?"

The rabbit rolled over and feebly got up onto his feet. He would've fallen had Lharom not been there to brace him. "What happened?" he croaked, now leaning bodily on his helper.

"You don't remember a thing?" asked Don, frowning.

Dakari rubbed his eyes weakly. "I remember some stuff…it's mostly a blur though. I recall…falling off a cliff with a companion, but the name eludes me as of now…I do hope he's alright. And…" He shot bolt upright. "Watishi!" he moaned. A reassuring nicker emerged from the bushes as Watishi trundled out. "Thank heaven…come here, friend, let me embrace you." The teela butted him gently in the chest as his arms encircled her neck, squeezing her slightly.

"Can you see at all, Dakari?" Lharom inquired, wincing when Watishi accidentally stepped on his maimed paw. "Hey, watch where you're putting those things, you hare-brained animal!" The teela gave him a solid kick in the ribs, making him wheeze. "Alright, alright, just don't kick me!"

The samurai didn't seem to notice the bickering that went on. "Well, no, not really. It's quite dark, though I can see shapes moving around. And…two pairs of purple eyes?"

"He's not blind, at least," Saesha muttered.

Orcaine snorted. "You make it sound like a bad thing."

Raph started when a voice called out from the forest. "Hey, Orcaine, is it safe to come out yet?" Kyrunir whimpered. "It's kinda scary in here. Ow! Don't kick me, Ukeera!"

She tumbled out of the shrubs, glaring profusely at her wussy companion. "Grow some backbone, Ky," she grumbled.

"Yeah, I don't like having to reassure you that every single sound isn't a wolfena coming to eat you," Rijinn commented sourly from atop Ukeera's shoulder. Kyrunir squeaked when he saw Lharom, but received another kick in the shin from Ukeera.

"It's just Lharom! Geez, get a hold of yourself, wimp!"

Aeki pried the two apart. "C'mon, guys, knock it off and get away from each others' throats, will you? We don't want another murder on our hands."

That only made the problem worse. "You _killed _someone?" he whispered incredulously, eyes growing to the size of grapefruits.

The fact that Raph's jaw was held shut by telepathy only permitted him to groan in exasperation. The young rukit's breath quickened for a brief moment, and then, his eyes rolled up into his head and he fainted.

Don backhanded him in the head. "Leave the poor guy alone, Raph!" he growled. "I wouldn't laugh; you're the one afraid of itty bitty—Ouch, point taken." He rubbed the part of his arm where Raph had slugged him to shut him up.

Saesha sighed. "That's it, I'm afraid those two – and you, Aekishala – are going to go back to the Secret Caverns where they'll be safe."

Aeki went stone-faced. "I _don't _want to go back to any place where I'll be forced to sit around and make lace all day! Do you hear me?"

The dragon glared at her. "Yes or no, you're going." With that, she pinned all three of them together with telepathy, Kyrunir as well, and turned to Don. "Be right back. Just before she teleported them, Rijinn hopped off Ukeera's shoulder and landed near Raph's feet.

"Garr, no warning whatsoever!" he grunted, climbing up Raph's leg and perching on his shoulder. A few seconds later, Saesha reappeared, satisfied.

"There. Now then, I say we get a move on, because that town doesn't look all too friendly. See what I mean?" She meant the line of torches steadily moving toward them, flickering in the darkness. Dakari grunted and tried standing on his own, but had to grab for Watishi's mane. "Master rabbit, you're in no shape for that sort of activity. Knock it off," she scolded. "Now then, shall we go? They're not looking any nicer."

Don scratched his jaw. "Well, which way?"

Lharom shook his head vigorously. "I say northwest, same way we've been going. We want to avoid going straight north because there's a fort on the connection on land between Fruruwur and southern Hseiey. I've been over there twice and it isn't pleasant at all."

Dakari's floppy ears perked up. "Where are we?" he asked tentatively.

"On the outskirts of Lidiwa. Why?" The samurai looked around, squinting.

"Who travels with us?" Rijinn grunted and flared his back into a spine of fire for a brief second.

"They would've seen that," the dragon mumbled, inclining his head toward the villagers. Dakari was rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

"Would you perchance be two of Leonardo-san's brothers?" he croaked. Don and Raph exchanged looks that could've been somewhat close to excitement.

"You've seen him?" Don inquired.

"Yes, and traveled with him for a short while. But we became separated in the turmoil following an earthquake and both fell into the ocean." Don's ears drooped. Raph looked crestfallen as well for a second, then rearranged his features to a blank stare.

_Oh, come off it. He's just as alive and kicking as you or I, _somebody insisted dryly. Dakari fell over with a sharp yelp, his support having been removed, and was saved a face plant by a beak seizing the back of his tunic. _Bleh, _she spat, letting go of him as well. _You taste sweaty, Dakari._

Don whipped out his staff and crouched. "Who are you, and what do you want?" he growled.

The pale blue bird looked him over with fathomless black eyes. _Put your stick away, Donatello. _Bewildered, the turtle gradually stood, his staff still in his hands as a precautionary measure. _Now, as to who I am, you hasty fellows, I'm known as Kadi. _Her black eyes glittered. _However, Dakari, to you I'm called Watishi._

Rijinn cocked his head and ground out, "Say what?"

_You heard me, stone ears. _The dragon snorted. _And as for your brother, Leo, as I said, he's as alive as he needs to be. Perhaps a bit disoriented, but alive never the same._

"How do we know? You could be lying."

Kadi ruffled her feathers and glared at him. _You're the moron of the bunch, aren't you?_ Don grabbed Rijinn by the tail to restrain him. _I know he's still vitalized because my counterpart travels with him. I'm sure you remember Tunali, right, Dakari? _The samurai nodded slowly. _He's a phoenix in disguise, just as I was an icunix in disguise. _

Saesha unfurled her wings. "But why the secrecy?"

_Oh, you know how it is. The feathers are magic, all that turd. People get the wrong impression because we're birds that'd rather keep to ourselves instead of singing our fool heads off in some forgotten forest where there are sweet little deer and squirrels to keep you company. That's for idiots, those tales are. _

They fell silent for a few minutes, and Raph, who couldn't talk if he wanted to, made it clear like he would love to be the one to break it. "So," Don said slowly, "we can get to Leo? You actually know where he is?"

Kadi unfurled her wings and yawned. _To a degree. But my, let's get out of _their _sight, shall we? _The icunix crouched down and slid her neck under Dakari, between his legs, and shrugged him into a position right above her wings. A shout from the villagers spurred them into action. Saesha and Rijinn both launched into the night sky, pumping her wings to gain altitude. Kadi raised her wings and brought them down in an almighty down beat, joining the two dragons in the air. Finally, Don and Raph scrambled onto Lharom's back.

They were just about to leave when Orcaine yelled, "Hi, you amnesiac fools, what do you expect me to do? Run through the forest?" This was a subtle reminder that she was without wings. Saesha called an apology and brought her into the air with telepathy, Lharom following the vern in her artificial flight. Then, together, they shot off to the northwest.

* * *

Tahkar jumped first, sliding around the corner and snarling like a demon. She looked the part as well, her hackles standing up like needles, her teeth bared and her eyes red. Leo and Tunali were about to follow suit when they heard a surprised yell, a grunt of "Ow" and a warning growl from their canine companion. Leo leapt out from behind the corner and stopped.

The serulaf had a diminutive little person pinned to the floor of the ravine. He looked rather flustered and would have been wearing a pack had he been standing. As it was, it had been flung to the side when Tahkar ambushed him. Tunali peered at them through wide eyes. "Oh, for crying out loud, you great stupid phoenix, it's only a dwarf," she growled through bared teeth.

"Only a dwarf?" he squeaked in indignation, squirming fiercely. "_Only_ a dwarf? I'll have you know that I'm a most professed scholar, you hare-brained brute!" Tahkar pressed her forepaw to his throat as a warning.

"Hold on, Tahkar, let him up," Leo blurted, hiding a smile. "He's not likely to do any harm."

The serulaf only snorted. "He's probably studied hundreds of spells, Leonardo, and for all we know, he could prove dangerous."

The dwarf pursed his lips knowledgeably. "Well, yes, that's true, but mind you, I can't necessarily use magic. Now, get off me! You're crushing my arms!"

"Hrmph. What were you doing, sneaking around here for?"

"Gathering mushrooms! What _else _could a potions master possibly find in this dead place?"

Tahkar bared her teeth, suspicions renewed. "It strikes me as a trifle strange to find one of your kind wandering here, dwarf."

Leo sheathed his swords and pulled the overprotective female off him. "Will you quit interrogating him, Tahkar?" he asked. Tunali came out of hiding, lowering his head as he came to stand by the serulaf, who snorted with contempt.

"Coward," she muttered. The dwarf got up, gave her an icy glare, and dusted himself off. Now that he was not obstructed by Tahkar's angry form, Leo saw that he was only about three and a half feet tall, but not clad in garments one would expect a scholar to wear. His tunic was a dark forest green, held in by a belt that restrained his paunch. His boots were large and dusty, nicked with travel. From beneath bushy eyebrows twinkled viridian eyes. His mouth was almost hidden in the scraggly length of braided auburn beard that melded with his hair and extended down to his belt. And planted on the very top of his head was an iron cap.

"Ah, yes, thank you…erm, noble green fellow," the dwarf grunted, crossing his arms. "Am I correct in assuming that you are one of the rebellion's spies?"

Taken aback, all the turtle could manage was, "Well…er…"

"Yes, yes, splendid, very good," he muttered. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Bokur, one of the last remaining dwarves on this plagued planet. At least, that _I _know of. And that's saying something if a scholar such as myself admits to it." He frowned at Tahkar and continued. "Before being oh so gently tackled" (he put a great more emphasis on gently than was needed) "by this most dignified of serulafs, I had been gathering these fungi for a potion. I pride myself in being a bit of a scientist—"

"And apparently a hela of a braggart," Tahkar grunted snidely.

Bokur glared at her. "Only to the mind of an uncivilized animal such as yourself." Tahkar snorted and pinned back her ears. "As I was saying…" He rummaged around in his fallen pack, finally extracting several small mushrooms. The caps of them were a pale, luminous white that glowed in the dark while the stems were a dark green and the gills were glowing indigo. "These are called Veiled Ashes, and have quite a potent poison when treated in a cauldron the correct way."

"What were you planning on using them for?"

His answer made Leo groan. "Breakfast, you dolt! I didn't say they weren't edible!"

Tahkar raised her eyebrows. "Really, at this time of night?"

"Oh, for the love of Yulakai, they can't be _seen _in the daytime!"

"But what was that noise you made when she growled at you from around the corner?" Leo asked.

Bokur blushed. "I…er…"

Tahkar sniffed the air and wrinkled her nose, coughing. "Oi, dwarf, that's some powerful stank!" Tunali started coughing as well, only his meant laughter.

Leo was still in the dark, however. Literally, if you wanted a corny joke for the day. "Why, what'd he do?" he asked, puzzled.

Seeing that he had not lost all of his dignity, Bokur promptly put on a straight face and grabbed his pack. "Never you mind, chelonian," he grumbled, walking back up to the place where the ravine traveled back up to level ground. Once all four of them had gotten out into the place where Leo and Tunali had been ambushed, Tahkar simply could not take it. She started laughing. "Haven't I gotten enough grief from you already?"

Tunali started rolling around on the ground as he coughed. "Hahahah, we were afraid…of a dwarf with…_gas _problems!" Tahkar gasped as she tried to regain her breath. Now Leo finally understood Bokur's embarrassment.

"Oh, really, guys, give him a little slack." The turtle attempted to preserve the dwarf's dignity but failed miserably. He started chuckling uncontrollably, thinking of the time when Rijinn had taken control of Raph's bodily functions and used them to a nastier extent. Leatherhead had been able to dive underwater but Leo had been stuck right behind to farting turtle.

Bokur grumbled. "Meet a guy and you exploit his weaknesses for no reason…" He grunted and started off in the direction that Tahkar had come from.

Leo decided to walk with the flustered dwarf. "Would you mind answering a question, Bokur?"

He sneaked a look at him from out of the corner of his eye. "If it's to do with the you-know-what, yes."

The turtle raised his hands. "No, not that. I mean about Tahkar, what she said. It's suspicious for a dwarf to be seen here?"

Bokur sighed. "Anywhere, for that matter. We've gone into hiding; you can't scarcely hear or see a dwarf in any part of this world because if we were walking freely like those two back there, we'd be promptly caught. We dwarves are commonly metal workers, and if Xetyphaes were to enslave us, he'd have an arsenal up his sleeve." Leo nodded, seeing the masterful card that would be to play. "So you see, we never walk outside unless at night and even then we may only sneak around for fear we might be sighted."

"But you say _commonly _metal workers."

"I say it because my people (or at least, my clan, I suppose) think it absolute poppycock to waste time filling their heads with things such as books, vocabulary, potions, anything that involves sitting around and burying their noses in a textbook. They'd rather make swords, spears, anything brutish and used to kill. That's one of the reasons why you'll never see me wearing a weapon. It's simply barbaric."

Leo pulled out a katana and observed the disgusted look Bokur gave it. "Bokur, a weapon on its own can't do any harm, but in the hands of a master may strike killing blows or save. It's up to the wielder what he should do with it: defend or take life. Case in point, if you think of it as killing, it will be. But when you see it as protecting those you love and having to kill to do it, you feel no remorse, as it was the person's own choice and fault to threaten your family. Therefore, making weapons isn't brutish if it's for a good cause." The dwarf looked thoughtful, then grunted.

"Hmph," he said, shuffling for a few steps. "I'm insulted I, a scholar, didn't think of it that way." Leo smiled and sheathed his sword again.

* * *

And that's chapter 13.As for the last part in Leo's segment, forgive me. I'm not sure I understood that 'life and death' thing myself. Kinda hard to word. Anyway, I hope you all won't kill me for having Mike on the brink of death today. Gotta go, see ya!

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


	14. Explanations and A Pissed Bima

**Disclaimer: **I truly don't own the TMNT. I've got too many OCs in here to name, so I'll name a few I own: Yulakai, Orcaine, Naicro, Lharom, Dakari, Aekishala, Ukeera, Kyrunir, Sor, Kiara, Iwansi, Bima, Kiyo, Rijinn, Saesha, Aireilei, Palaesi, Rainbou, Xetyphaes, Kadi/Watishi, Hytis/Tunali, Tahkar, Shahkar, Bokur, Heinakwa, Hannalei, Erori, Fyla, Tor, Anorr, and Avialle. Whew, that's quite a bit more than a few!

A/N: Wow, an update! Good golly, I did it! YES! Okay, people, as for Shades of Gray, that's in the works. I've got all the chapters brewing in my outline (strange, I never did outlines before this) and the second chapter should be up soon. Meanwhile, enjoy the chapter of this story! I must warn you younger readers, there is some...ahem, crude humor in the Mikey part of the chapter.

**14.**

"Okay, so what is it that you simply can't understand about inter dimensional traveling?" Bokur demanded, stopping. "What have I left out?"

Leo shrugged helplessly. "Well, I…er…can we just start at how I got here?" he asked, cringing inwardly at the smoldering glare the dwarf scholar gave him. For the last few hours, they had been traveling south, and to keep Leo occupied, Bokur decided to explain the mechanics of dimensional travel. Most of it went right over Leo's head. Don would've understood it far better than he.

The dwarf grimaced, wrinkled his large nose, and started again, walking forward. "Well…hm, how do I make this easier…? Ah! Well, think of it this way." Bokur halted, and pointed at two trails of ants on the ground, diligently marching across the path. Once in a while, an ant would slow down because its burden was too heavy and thus slowed the ants behind it. "Now, you see those lines? There is a place called the time space continuum, where nothing but different dimensions exist, all in parallel lines to one another. And each world has a different time flow. Such as these ants. Each one has a similar, yet not so, particle of food to carry." Leo nodded. So far, it was making sense. "Inter dimensional travel is simply hopping from one world to the next. If there's particularly powerful magic involved, one can jump a galaxy, or if a smaller power, several worlds."

A light went on. "So, if you had something like the Time Scepter, you could jump galaxies instead of planets one by one?"

"Exactly!" crowed Bokur. "But, the concept itself of gathering such a force requires the magic of time itself. Portal magic is mastering a small portion of the flow of time. The mage Lharom Kahaza was especially good at this. He could manipulate both physical and dream space. Doing such a thing would mean decades of practice, and one false move sends you spinning into a void where nothing exists. That's why it's dangerous to traverse between Realms like Lharom does. He mastered such a magic by a stroke of pure luck. Now, how did you say you got here again?"

Leo sighed. "I'm not quite sure. I think Aireilei was messing around with Iwansi's egg fragment and activated something."

The dwarf became, if you could say it, bright eyed and bushy tailed immediately. "Aireilei, eh?" He obviously had a hard time holding in a chuckle. "Really? Extraordinary! So, she still lives…that's good news. Means she can kick that bachia's butt to the next New Moon. Now, who is this Iwansi, Leo?"

"Mikey's dragon buddy. The two are so alike when they're together, it's scary. When she's away from him though, she gets cranky."

"Ah! I might have suspected as much!" Bokur grinned. "A dragon's egg is a magic source for those who could use it right. However, only a dragon's fire could waken that sleeping power, so technically, either Aireilei or…Iwansi, was it? Yes, breathed flames on it. You see, Leonardo," he said, scratching his beard, "all worlds, whether the inhabitants know it or not, possess some kind of magic which keeps it alive."

Leo looked up at the fog-ridden morning sky. "But wait. The Earth's core is full of magma," he stated, confused.

The dwarf's eyes gleamed. "Your point? All scholars know of this life force. You could say it's a disguise. What do you think is in the very center of your planet?"

The turtle still didn't get it, but answered anyway. "A hard ball of dense metals."

"And what do you think is _inside _that core? Don't know, do you? Well, think of it as the pit of…oh, that strange fruit you call a nectarine. Some substance always surrounds the core of every planet, whether it be soil, rock, or magma. Perhaps it's gas, such as Jupiter would be an example. Fruit surrounds the pit of a nectarine. But in the very inside of that is the deadly poison, toxic cyanide. However, I won't say the life force of a planet is poison. Rather, it's the thing that keeps everything – the plants growing and so on – alive. Now, do you get this so far?"

_Boy, this would get Don's goat for sure! _Leo thought wryly with a chuckle. "Yes, I believe so."

"Alright then, getting back to magic items. A dragon's egg shard is one of the few things that can accomplish this task. Among it are phoenix feathers, ice breathed by its relative the icunix, beihl egg shells, and teeth from the dangerous yinru." Leo winced visibly. "Met one, have you? Wouldn't have been a mother during her egg period, would it?" He nodded gingerly, remembering the close call he had in the cove. "Ah, bad luck. Well, to begin with, all of those items I mentioned are particularly dangerous to obtain, save for the dragon's egg shard.

"A dragon, as you well know, is a being perhaps far more intelligent than ourselves. As we have heard, Rainbou was the mother of all dragons and some races. Her mate, Yulakai, has not been seen for five hundred years. Anyway, the shard would be harder to get if they didn't consent to it and were the mindless beasts you earthers hear of in tales. Maybe that would be true back in the dark ages, but apparently, they began to wonder why they even had to stay on that planet and be slain by knights again and again. Their population was diminishing rapidly. So, as intelligent entities, they left Earth with the help of a timestress named Renet, going separate ways." Leo hid a smile. They'd gone to the Dark Ages with her! He'd been wondering what she did after they left back to New York! "Rainbou and Yulakai came here, for our world was young, unmarred, and uninhabited, unless you count the dwarves, rukits, and elves. The gunghir appeared when Rainbou worked magic on two bats, thus making a pair of them. Their name is ancient, and I daresay I haven't a clue what it means. Elvish, probably."

Mumbling brought their attention to Tahkar and Hytis, who had taken phoenix form again_. …Don't make _me_ ask them, just…oh, hang it all, Tahkar, don't run off…_ the phoenix protested as the serulaf veered to the left and dashed away into the tall grasses. To their questioning glances, he replied, _Gone hunting. She claims she'll be back soon._

Bokur frowned. "Oh, yatin, I've lost my bloody train of thought," he grumbled, harrumphing. After a few minutes, he startled Leo by yelling, "Ahah! There it is! Ehem. Now, about the magic. Life force found in dragon eggs, beihl eggs, yinru teeth, phoenix feathers, and icunix ice can all be used as either a magic amplifier or a portal. Not as good, perhaps, as the Time Scepter, but it's good enough if you'd like to get somewhere fast. The downside is that you must have a member of that species present to activate it. It's a reason why one will never dare risk his or her neck to get somewhere just by stealing a shell from a beihl's nest, which they will use for their entire life, or yinru teeth. The yinru would promptly bite off the hand, pardon the pun, that feeds it. And a dragon that's sane hasn't been seen for four hundred fifty-three years. A mighty large span of time."

"So, how did we get separated?" Leo asked. That was something he couldn't, for the life of him, work out.

"Well, you weren't holding onto each other!"

A sudden thought struck him. "There was someone else in the Lair, and I could swear he didn't get transported too."

"Why do you think a dragon must be present for a dragon's _spell_ to work?" Bokur demanded. "All of you have a dragon's tail, ears and eyes! I presume your other buddy did not!" He fell into satisfied silence for a while as Leo contemplated this explanation. "Ah, but after that, I need my pipe!" The dwarf rummaged around in his pack until he produced a rather short wooden pipe, dark in color. He stuffed a pile of pipe weed into the end and turned to Hytis. "Now, then, would you be so kind as to light this, sir?"

The phoenix seemed uncomfortable with the concept. _I…well, I don't know. It's been a while since I..er, breathed fire on such a small thing._

"Just hang your concerns, bird, and light the bloody pipe!" he growled around the stem. He began to grind out another complaint but yelled in surprise as a red tongue of flame nearly incinerated his beard. "By Yulakai, watch where you aim that!"

_I told you I wasn't that confident, didn't I? _Hytis seemed a bit smug, but looked the part of innocence in a nutshell.

Bokur stared down at his smoking pipe and huffed. "Well, it's lit and I suppose that's all that matters," he admitted gruffly, stuffing it into his mouth and sucking in. He expelled a long stream of gray smoke out the corner of his mouth, making a bluish smoke ring.

At that moment, the ground began to quake and rumble. The vibrations traveled up Leo's legs and spine, sending a shiver all the way back down. He closed his eyes and searched for any minds to read. Most were only rank with fear, but one was hungry. "Guys…" he started, backing up. "We're in the path of a stampede!" Immediately after he said it, a nearly frantic with panic herd of wild teela thundered out of the bushes. Leo had barely enough time to grab Bokur, and leap nimbly away before a black teela flattened him.

Hytis took flight, spouting the phoenix song, the haunting notes echoing beautifully around the sparse trees, brush, and boulders. As Leo dodged another teela, he noticed it had slowed down more than the rest when it passed near the singing bird. Just as the teelas had nearly gotten over their fear, Tahkar bolted out of the shrubs and pounced on one of the smaller juveniles. The herd in chaos once again, Leo finally hopped on top of a large granite boulder to avoid the wildly kicking herbivores' hind paws.

The serulaf, now firmly attached to the colt's back, opened wide her mouth, showing off gleaming white teeth. Then, swift as a viper, she crushed the teela's neck with her powerful jaws. The loud crack of a spine being broken resounded through Hytis's phoenix song. Tahkar continued to rip and tear at the pained animal's neck until it fell forward onto its chest. Blood gurgled in its throat until finally, with a rattling intake of air, the colt's eyes rolled up in its head and it died.

Leo slid off his perch and carefully deposited Bokur on the ground. "Of all the incompetent, idiotic, yatined foolish things to do!" he bellowed angrily at Tahkar as she wrenched a bloody strip of neck muscle off the carcass. "Why in Yulakai's name did you do that?" The dwarf advanced on her, his pipe in his hand.

_Tahkar, I must admit, bringing the whole herd here wasn't the smartest thing you could have done, _Hytis admitted, landing on the ground.

She gulped the meat. "Well, I knew you guys were going to get hungry sooner or later. Leo, you might as well take your chance and cut off a leg." The canine licked her lips and panted with satisfaction. "It's quite tender and juicy."

Bokur stumped to a rock and promptly sat upon it, glowering at her. "If I knew what you said, I would've contradicted you," he grumbled, stuffing his pipe in his mouth and blowing red smoke rings.

* * *

Bima sat there on the gravel for a while, just staring into space, the thunder of the waterfall hammering her ears. If Kiyo were here, he'd be able to help them teach Palaesi how to control wind. If he were here. The silvery-blue dragon gritted her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut. She wanted to curse Xetyphaes's entrails with every known language, every known insult she could muster. How _dare _he steal her brother for some…reproduction experiment! Who knew how it would turn out? A mother and son aren't meant to mate! Of course, you'd never get that into his pint-sized brain.

"Um, Bima? Yoohoo?" Aireilei flicked her on the nose and whipped her hand back in surprise when her sister snapped at it. "You okay?" Bima panted angrily and nodded. The white dragon's face hardened. "Look, I know you're not happy with the current circumstances. But we can't go back and get Kiyo out. We're too little; he'd squash us like bugs. We need the others' help."

"I hate being helpless," Bima growled savagely.

She nodded. "Me too, but right now, we have to get this little one back to safety and Mike somewhere he can rest. I don't think Naicro's," she added slyly, "back will suffice for a bed." Bima sighed and spared a glance at the sleeping Palaesi. The toddler still had Mikey's hand in a firm grip and was snoozing her cares away like there was no tomorrow. Every now and then she would get agitated in her dreams and send out a breeze.

"True. But, considering how hard she was to hold down, you'd better not separate her from Meki," Bima grunted snidely, dodging a thwack from Aireilei's agile tail. She grinned and stood up, stretching her limbs to prepare to hoist all three passengers into the air.

"Alright, Bima, you get on my back," the white dragon instructed. Bima promptly ran around to her backside and hopped nimbly onto her spine, climbing up until she rested between Aireilei's wings. "I'm going to pass Palaesi up to you. Don't jostle her too much; she'll fall when we're above the forest."

"Yeah, whatever, just don't shove her in my – Mmmph!" She was cut off when Aireilei stuffed the gunghir's tiny body into her mouth.

"Don't you dare bite down," Aireilei warned when Bima gave her the death glare of all death glares.

_You're such a dipstick, _the silvery-blue dragon growled through her mind. _I can't believe this! How humiliating!_

"Hey, just be glad your buddy Rijinn's elsewhere. He'd give you a hard time for sure." Aireilei slid her arms under Mike's form and grunted as she picked him up. "Gods above, he's heavy as a brick!"

_Hah. _As the white dragon crouched for liftoff, Bima clamped onto her neck to anchor herself down. _Mother just _had _to chew off my tail, didn't she? _she grumbled as the ground dropped away. _And my right ear! Ooh, I hope she's ready for some biting around the nursing area!_

Amused, Aireilei stated, "Dragons don't have nipples for that activity." This shut her sister up, but only for a second.

_You have boobs, _Bima retorted, swaying as her transport banked to the right.

"They aren't boobs!"

_Oh yeah? What do you call those soccer ball sized bumps on your chest?_

"And they aren't the size of soccer balls!"

_And what would you have behind that armor, then? Perhaps rocks stuffed down in your early days? _she shot back.

Aireilei swung her head around and let a small tongue of white flame lick Bima's snout, causing a muffled squeal to erupt from her throat. "It's the way I was made, so can it."

_Hrmph. What sense does anybody have to give a dragon unneeded breasts?_

"Look, shut up or I'll do a loop and drop you, oh wingless one."

_Empty threat – OH GEEZ! _Aireilei had made good her threat and done a partial vertical climb up, causing her passenger to slide backward and make squeaking noises on her scales with her claws. As soon as she leveled out again, she found her back feeling moister than it should have. _Good night, you ever do that again and I'll _really_ water your garden!_

"Eew, I'm taking a bath when I land! Sicko!" the white dragon cried, feeling the wind blow off the urine that had showered her back. "Don't you have any bladder controls?"

_Hey, when I get scared, I pee like any other chicken of the air! Just be thankful I'm not Raph, or you'd be covered in chunky soup right now. _The tremble had left her voice. _So wait. If we can't be nursed, then what _do _we eat when we're born? _She sounded perturbed.

Aireilei could not help spouting a guffaw at the absurdity of the question. "Don't you remember what you ate when you got out of your egg, silly?" she chuckled, settling into a glide across the dark green tops of the trees.

_Well, not really. I do recall being ravenously hungry for _something _though. I think it was Saesha who caught a bird for us. _The child-like confusion was too humorous to ignore._ But why couldn't we eat plants?_

"Number one, your gnashers aren't made for the stuff. And number two, it's the grossest thing you can ever ingest, besides mustard."

Bima made a face, as best as one can when one's mouth is full of Palaesi butt. _How can that yellow variation of bird doo doo be called a table condiment? It's sour and tastes like Mikey's socks!_

"You've tasted his socks."

_When you gotta chew something, his socks are always lying around. Victims just waiting to be gnawed upon_

"Yuck. Are you really that uncivilized?"

_Think about that question for a second, then you tell me, two-legger._

Aireilei grinned. "Oh, so now I'm the enemy just because I stand on two legs?"

_Yeah! The pictures Don's shown me of other dragons that people drew look like idiots! And they stand on _four _legs!_

"So? You're intelligent enough."

_Enough? _Bima questioned dangerously.

"Nothing meant by it."

_Oh suuuure. Big. Fat. LIAR. _She emphasized each word with a screech of a different note on Aireilei's scales.

"Hey, quit it, you'll wake sleeping beauty!" Aireilei protested.

_Which one? Three-Ton Lard or Stinky Butt Bat?_

"Use the brain the overly kind gods gave you."

_Oh, _that_ was an insult!_

"Darn straight it was."

_Why I oughta…_

"Hang on, we're landing!" The next second, Bima was jarred from her spot on Aireilei's back and flew off as if she had wings again. She had to turn in midair to avoid squishing Palaesi when she landed in a pile of fresh teela…erm, you get the picture.

The angry dragon carefully deposited Palaesi on the ground next to Mikey before bursting out, "Where in the name of _FIRE_ is the stupid _COW _that made this _PIE_! I can't believe I just landed in _TEELA CRAP!_" She continued to rant furiously, cursing in various ways that wouldn't look at all nice in print. "I will _TEAR _the brainless _SOW _who did this into _PIECES!_"

Iwansi was rolling on the grass, laughing fit to split her sides. When she tried to talk, all that came out were more laughs, gasps, and air deprived squeals of mirth. Naicro, who was standing nearby, merely smiled in a fatherly way at the pissed off silver-blue dragon. Aireilei was trying very hard not to cause her sister more grief by chuckling, but there still emerged a few that she missed cutting back. Sor, who had just emerged from the forest with a water skin, gaped at her in surprise as she continued cursing. Kiara hid her smile masterfully; the only real proof that she was grinning fit to burst was her eyes that were crinkled into slits.

"If I _EVER _find a _RIVER _to clean this crud off, so help me I'll kick the da–" And here we cut off, for more choice expletives followed, and to keep this story in the lower part of the rating T, I'll keep them out. Mature writers, use your imagination. By now, Iwansi was laughing uncontrollably and Palaesi was well awake.

The little gunghir wrinkled her nose in distaste. "What's that icky smell, Auntie Aweil?" she complained, plugging the receiver of the stench with her two index fingers.

"Oh this is _GREAT! _Just _PERFECT! _Now a kid with freakishly strong wind magic makes fun of me _TOO!_" Bima bellowed hotly. There was a circle of flattened crab grass where she had stamped around the pile of…ah, I'll leave that to you guys. "I'm so cheesed _OFF!_" To prove it, she spat a large ball of flames at the mound, setting it on fire and filling the air with an even more putrid stench.

Naicro coughed. "I believe it is well past departure time, child," he gagged, turning upwind from the smoldering dung.

"My thoughts exactly, father," Aireilei agreed, flattening her ears. Iwansi's eyes were spouting hissing tears now.

"Ohohoh!" the yellow dragon gasped. "I knew we should've stopped that teela from taking a dump, Naicro!" Bima, now aware there wasn't a stream nearby, grumbled curses and more expletives, continuing to revile the offending teela as she rolled around in the grass.

"When _anybody _sights a stream, tell me or I swear by my Claw, I'll…Sor, you tell me where that water is or you're as good as sterile!" Bima ground out, settling her glare on him. The gunghir gulped and glanced suggestively down at that place where the sun don't shine. Kiara, unable to keep her laughter in any longer, shattered the uncomfortable silence.

Sor was turning pale now. "That's _not _funny, Bima!"

"It most certainly _IS!_" Iwansi roared, helpless to the streams of tears that were running out of her eyes.

"That's downright horrible!" the male gunghir squeaked. "Have you any idea how much that would hurt?"

Bima growled, "Tell me, or your dick gets it." To make a point, the silvery-blue dragon raised a paw adorned with sharp silver claws that gleamed hungrily in the sunlight.

"Alright, alright, just don't hurt me!" Sor dashed away into the trees with a girly squeal, Bima hot on his tail and cursing like a sailor. Aireilei stared, severely disturbed, at the trail they left in the vegetation.

"Well!" she remarked with a chuckle. "_That _was worth seeing!"

Iwansi gasped, "Oh, I can't breathe…I can't breathe!" and choked on giggles again.

Kiara grinned devilishly. "I'd pay to see that again. I would've helped Bima do it too…" She pulled out a rapier and examined its incredibly sharp edge, much to the utter amusement of Iwansi.

Palaesi, however, didn't understand why the funny batman had run off looking so scared. "What's a dick?" she asked, impervious to Iwansi's howl of laughter at the question.

"Erm, maybe when you're older," Aireilei said, picking up the little girl. She soon realized her mistake when she started crying.

"Nooo, put me down, I wants Meki!" she sobbed. The dragon dropped her on Mike's plastron as though she were acid. The pint-sized blow wakened the turtle in an instant.

"Whoa, what the shell's that stank?" he promptly asked, making a face that even Kiyo would question. "Did someone cut one? Cause that sure smells!"

"Yay, Meki!" Palaesi jumped up and grabbed his ear, pulling herself up to enjoy the view from his scalp. "Did you sleeps okay, Meki?" she asked naively, flattening herself on his head.

Mike blinked. "Who's the kid?"

"I was about to ask that too," Kiara added, sheathing her sword.

It came to the turtle in a few seconds. "Oh, hey kiddo! We made it, eh?" He pried the kid off his head and bounced her up and down. "Man, that would've been a seriously awful fall, eh?"

Her face brightened. "I saw the big bag guy get babikeyed!" she chattered excitedly.

"Babikeyed?"

"Her word for barbecue, I suppose," Aireilei supplied.

"Ah, really? You do the crispy fry job, Airy?"

"Yup. Nicely browned and carrying the scent of burnt chicken on the wind," she replied, snorting smoke in satisfaction. Just then, Sor emerged from the undergrowth, pale from his scare and keeping far ahead of Bima 'lest she change her mind and make him a eunuch for the satisfaction for seeing him squeal like a little girl again. The dragon was now sparkling clean, but signs that she was still ticked off dwelled in her eyes.

Sor ran to Kiara and hid behind her. "Don't let her come near me," he pleaded pitifully.

Mike guffawed at him. "What'd you do to make her so pissed off, Sor?"

Iwansi giggled. "When Aireilei landed, Bima flew into a pile of poop. She got so angry she made Sor lead her to a stream or she'd…heheh…remove his jewels in the most painful way!" Her efforts for a straight face went out the door and she started rolling on the grass again.

"I'm telling you, she's insane!" Sor protested weakly.

Aireilei grinned sympathetically. "Sor, be thankful she doesn't have wings any more, or I swear, she'd make you miserable in the air." Kiara sniggered at his relieved look. Bima scowled. "I say we get going before somebody finds us, alright?"

Mike accidentally inhaled more perfume a la poo. "Phew, yes ma'am!" he hastily said, hopping onto her back. Palaesi giggled with delight when Aireilei lifted off.

"Naicro, you know what to do, right?"

He nodded sagely. "Follow your shadow, child. On my back, little one," he said to Bima. She grudgingly muttered something along the lines of being as old as a granny from the Stone Age wasn't young, but she jumped on anyway. Iwansi took flight and hovered beside Aireilei, Sor close behind. Naicro allowed Kiara to get on before whirling like a ballet dancer and flowing into the trees silently as a ghost.

* * *

"Oh, ow, hey, that hurts!" Lharom growled, jerking his paw as Don tried to pry the spearhead out of it. "What're you doing, stabbing a stick into it?"

"No, I'm getting it _out_," Don patiently explained, gripping the spearhead. "Hold still; this'll look worse that it hurts." With finality, he yanked it out and was thrown back as the griffin roared in pain.

"Lor, that felt like you amputated my paw!" he complained, holding up the stricken foot.

Don shook his head and turned. "Orcaine! It's out!" he called into the darkness. The yellow vern came trotting out of the undergrowth laden with wood and a disgruntled Raphael on her back.

"Oh, good," she said lightly, allowing Raph to hop off before she deposited the tinder on the ground. She padded up to Lharom, scrutinized his wound, and grabbed it in her paw, ignoring the child-like yelp of pain Lharom let out. "This shouldn't be too hard to fix. Just a flesh wound."

"And maybe a nerve wound too!" Lharom suggested acidly. "Because the yatined thing hurts like hela!"

"Quit being such a chick," Orcaine chided, glowing white. A few seconds later, the griffin had his paw back, good as new. She turned back to Raph, who was clearing a space for fire on the ground. "Now, Raph, arrange those sticks in a teepee, like this…"

_Oh, for crying out loud, Hytis! You answer me! _Kadi snarled from the brush.

"Calm down, Kadi, maybe he's not concentrating," Dakari suggested.

Her reply came back with a scathing report. _The idiot can _sense _when I'm trying to contact him mentally! Now, for the love of Yulakai, will you _ANSWER _me, Hytis?_

Don shook his head and smiled. "Those two are like a married couple," he remarked, turning his head up to find Saesha in the moonlit sky. He didn't have to wait long. She came down at the speed of a bullet, obviously agitated and in the mood for a fight.

"Don, get a move on!" she hissed, prancing nervously on the ground. "There's a beihl in the bushes! And something else with it! The scent is too muddled to be anything but a…" She never finished. A huge glittering form crashed through the trees, felling one. Don yelled in surprise and grabbed his partner, diving to the side to miss the huge pine's trunk.

"What in the name of…?" Lharom started, but paled. "Jhadie," he cursed.

Raph had his Sais our and ready. "What the shell is that thing?" he bellowed, moving out of another tree's path. Rijinn landed on his shoulder, looking severely spooked. Orcaine had turned a bright sunflower yellow.

When the form moved into the moonlight, Don gasped and Kadi, who had emerged from the bushes, cursed profusely.

* * *

Aw, okay, c'mon, there was only ONE cliffie, wasn't there? (reviewers: "Who cares, it's still a cliffie! And a BAD one at that!") Oh well, a deal's a deal. You'll find out who Kadi's reviling next chapter.And for those of you who knowwhat nervousness is, pray for me onSaturday! There's a paradethe marching bandhas togo to. It's called the Bonita Fest. Adn to make things worse, Schrwarzaneggar is going to be there and it's going to be televised! Not good for the nerves,I tell you. For a first prarde, I don't think I'll do too well. I'm trying to get down the "walk in astraight line" thing and myrank leader has stork legs, so he takes awfully large steps. Til next time! And if you'd liketo hear how the parade went, my Live Journal link is on my bio; check it on Sunday.

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


	15. A Near Miss

**Disclaimer: **I own neither the turtles or…um, the turtles. However, I do own the whole planet and its inhabitants. No, Haradris, you fools, not Earth! …Although…(laughs devilishly, then sneaks away to perfect her world take-over plan)

A/N: Well, it's time for another exciting installment of Dragon Moon! You've waited a while, yes that's true, but you'll probably want me dead anyway! (grins with forced gleefulness) The review responses will be on Stealthy Stories. If you need the link, it's on my bio.

Edit: I realize most of you thought Naicro's death was lame as can be and as I thought about it, it is. So, we're keeping him alive so he can explain himself. :P

**15.**

To fully describe the size of the black dragon that now stood before them would be insignificant even on paper. His eyes were a glowing crimson, glittering like coals in the moonlight. His head was roughly the size of a pair of doors, sporting long ivory horns and ears that were now perked forward. Protruding from his gaping mouth were two long white fangs, along with many other glistening teeth. The head was held up high by a long sinuous neck of muscle, fifteen feet long and perhaps two feet thick. The body alone was the length of a tour bus, and the wings were larger than even his body to support his massive weight. And his tail was twenty feet long.

Don, clutching Saesha with one arm, gawked at the huge dragon, crow-hopping aside when it whirled on agile paws, tail whistling past the turtle, to face the beihl, which was substantially dwarfed by the dragon, yet large for its race. The monster hissed angrily and extended its sickly luminous tentacles, only to have them seared off by a billowing tongue of orange and yellow flames that lit the area for a brief second. The beihl screeched in an earsplitting tone, disturbing some birds that hadn't left with their flock when the black dragon frightened them out of their nests and trees.

Withdrawing its torched, bubbling limb, it drew a rattling breath. The air filled with a pungent stench, a mix between burnt flesh and an extremely strong pile of horse dung. As retaliation, the beihl whipped out its other arms, extending them past the dragon and sending them straight for the spectators standing by. Don leapt out of one's grasp with a wild yell, releasing Saesha and removing his Bo from its holster. With an almighty smack, he brought it down on the wriggling thing, extracting an unearthly squeal from it. Saesha finished the job by spitting a ball of purple fire at it, sizzling the bruised arm to a crisp.

"Phew, that's some stank!" Raph commented, the first to speak. He jabbed with a Sai at a tentacle reaching for him, stabbing it deep into the rubbery, nauseating flesh. Green blood frothed forth, staining his hand. Revulsion taking the place of his desire for a fight, he backed away, wiping his hand on grass as Orcaine stepped in. The pale yellow vern pounced like a feline onto the writhing arm, biting and tearing ferociously at it. Another tentacle came at her but Don intercepted it, smacking it into a tree as Orcaine fried her catch.

Dakari was weakly struggling against Kadi's wing, which was holding him back from the melee. "Let me fight, Kadi, I'm strong enough!" he insisted, trying to push it out of his face.

The icunix scowled and nipped one of his long gray ears. _You most certainly are _not _ready for such an activity, sir! Now you sit tight, or I swear by the Feather I'll freeze you into a block of ice! _she threatened, giving him a soft peck on the nose. The rabbit growled as one of the groping tentacles neared them. Kadi acted swiftly, singing a few notes from the phoenix song before breathing ice onto it, freezing it into a misting pillar.

Lharom, in wolfena form now, slid around the beihl's body and crunched a tentacle in two with his powerful jaws. "Oh, mother of mercy, that's a taste I dare not try again!" he said sourly, screwing up his face before repeating the action.

Rijinn, who had long since turned chicken to the brawl, watched his sister fight alongside Donatello, faithfully intercepting the arms that had gotten past his guard. "I hate those things!" he declared vehemently, perching on a branch near Kadi and Dakari. "They're so…_Ugh_!" he squeaked, falling off the bough to avoid a tentacle that went awry. "Good grief, keep them _away _from me!"

"Will you shut up and help?" Saesha snarled, flaming another arm and hearing the agonized scream that accompanied the scent of burned flesh. Rijinn swallowed his fear and lifted off the ground, having to back hard to the left to dodge. One of them almost smacked him to the dirt, but Raph saved his hide from the rubbery suction cups' grip. The turtle grimaced and ran away to help the black dragon, who was having a rough time deflecting the blows of the beihl.

He jumped in with a bellow and stabbed aside a tentacle that would've hit the dragon's vulnerable wing joint. He smiled grimly at the scream, then went for another one. He drove his Sai into an arm, pinning it to the ground before hopping nimbly over the black dragon's tail and spiking his other Sai into the beihl's foot. Taking the distraction to his advantage, the dragon spouted flames, charring the beihl where it stood and reducing it to ashes.

Panting, Raph leaned up against an unscathed tree and slid down the trunk to sit at its base. "Don, you okay?" he grunted.

"Peachy," was the reply his brother gave him. "Anybody hurt?"

_No, but I think Dakari chewed a hole in my wing,_ Kadi remarked, examining her limb with a forced grimace. In doing so, she removed the rabbit's support and he fell forward with a yell of surprise.

"And I think you broke my ribs," he groaned from under the brush.

Lharom examined a leg and coughed. "Somebody seared my paw!" he complained.

Saesha snorted with contempt. "You got in my way! You should watched where you're going!"

"_Me_? What about _you_, oh Mistress of the Mouth-Dwelling Flamethrower?" he said with scorn.

"Guys be _quiet_!" Don shouted. All talk ceased. Not expecting all attention to be on him, he blushed. "I think he has something to say," he said, pointing at the black dragon.

He looked at them with his red eyes, not blinking at all. _Hello, Donatello and Raphael of Earth. I'm Yulakai._

"Say WHAT?" Raph exploded.

_Why so shocked? I know where you're from because the scent of Earth lays on you like a blanket. I should know, _he stated simply, _I was a hatchling there once._

"But…you're Aireilei's dad, aren't you?" Don ventured.

_To put it lightly, yes, I'm her father. And you, Saesha and Rijinn, are also my children. _They both looked at each other. _Although, I must ask, _Yulakai began, eyes twinkling. _How in Claw's name did you get so small?_

"Little thing called 'old age shrinkage'," Raph grunted, receiving a harsh look from Kadi. He merely shrugged.

"Uh, we'd kill you with the length of the story, dad," Rijinn finally stammered.

_Time isn't an issue, son. _

Dakari got up and swayed with lost balance before Kadi caught him with her wing. "Speak for yourself," he grunted, pointing to the pile where the beihl had been. The strangest thing was happening. Picture the backward process of shriveling plastic in fire. Now make that plastic fill out into fleshy existence. This was exactly what appeared to be happening to the ashes of the monster. Tentacles, filling out and writhing around, were beginning to reform out of the quickly disintegrating pile.

Raph pulled out his Sais again. "Shell, why can't it just die already?"

_Fire can't kill a beihl, _Yulakai stated grimly.

"Might've been useful info before we started the fight!"

The huge dragon raised his immense wings and extended his left foreleg. _Hurry, get on my back! We have to get away from here before it completely reforms! _he warned. Don put his Bo into its holster and looked with awe at the limb.

"It's like a mountain of bone and muscle!" he muttered, climbing onto the large paw and scrambling up the leg. He stood in a long hollow between Yulakai's neck base and his giant wing joints. "Where can I sit?"

_Hm, that _is _an issue of a sort. Try holding onto one of my spikes,_ he suggested. Don looked at the ivory spike of bone protruding from Yulakai's ebony neck and sat gingerly in the hollow, legs on either side. _Good! Now you, Raphael. And make haste, we're running out of time. _Instead of sitting by Don, Raph climbed nimbly up the neck spikes and hunched on top of the black dragon's head, gripping his horns. _…That'll work, but hold on tight. _He looked at Orcaine with his crimson eyes. _What are you going to do, daughter?_

"Saesha, you can carry me, right?" Orcaine swung her head around to gaze at the purple dragon, who was rapidly becoming repulsed by the sight of the reforming beihl. She nodded mutely before activating her telekinesis. Rijinn hopped onto Lharom's back, who was again in griffin form.

"Why on earth are you riding me?" the griffin demanded. The red dragon smiled weakly before being bucked off. "Use your own wings, lazy boy!" Rijinn grumbled, flapping like a maniac to save himself a nose plant.

_And you, rabbit? _Yulakai asked, swerving his head towards the Dakari.

_I'll carry him, thank you very much! _Kadi snorted, shoving her neck under the samurai and launching into the sky. Yulakai abruptly let out a grating scream, a very unpleasant sound coming from a dragon. It sounded like the screech of nails against a chalkboard, a baby's cry, and an eagle call all rolled into one horrible wave of sound. He frog-hopped forward, hissing and clicking in pain. Don looked back and saw the reason: the beihl had seized his hind leg with a tentacle, squeezing it like anaconda coils. The flesh was burning and sizzling from contact with dragon scales.

Don slid off Yulakai's back, and carefully avoiding the other arms, he went toward the offending limb and smacked it off with his staff. "Go, fly!" the turtle yelled, putting his Bo in its holster and grabbing a tail spike.

Yulakai smashed the air under his wings down with an almighty thud, leaving terra firma. The pressure of the air displacement squeezed Don's eardrums painfully as each wing beat went. The black dragon's tail whipped around uncontrollably, yanking his arms and making his muscles scream with the strain. Deftly, Don reached for the next spike, slowly pulling himself up Yulakai's back. When he had arrived at the base of the tail, they had reached a high enough altitude that he didn't need to flap as hard. This stability provided the necessary calm for Don to completely get back into his original seat.

_You did well, little one, _Yulakai encouraged. _Thank you for freeing me._

_No problem, _Don replied in mind speech, his throat dry from rushing wind. _But next time, try to get off the ground faster, _he added, closing his eyes.

_I shall. And Donatello, if you simply must sleep, I'd suggest letting me carry you in my paws, because there with be a lesser danger of you plummeting to the ground below. _The turtle reopened his eyes and looked down. Trees directly below them, little green dots on a larger expanse of grass and dirt patches, swayed gently in the wind. The giant moon cast an eerie white light on everything. The trees reminded Don of tombstones in an unkempt graveyard. _I see you're fascinated with our moon, Larui. She is one of our two, _Yulakai said, his voice taking on a mellow tone as they stared at it. Its surface was pocked with several large craters, and gray spots. _Once Larui had been active in volcanic activity, which is why you see the spots. They are hardened lava. _

_A similar origin to our own, _Don mused thoughtfully.

_Our other moon, which only comes out during a momentous occasion that happens every one hundred years is named Eia' Bruk for its blackened surface. _The black dragon eased down into a steady glide. _She is a hermit-like moon, coming out only when the event called Dragon Moon occurs. For the only marking that distinguishes her from all the rest is a crescent shaped white mark with a dot in the mouth._

Don chuckled when he pictured it and the response Mike likely would've said. _Like Pac Man and the power pellets! _(A/N: This symbol Yulakai is mentioning is on the leg of my online alias on Deviant Art.) _What's so significant about this Dragon Moon? _he asked.

_When Rainbou and I, hatchlings at the time, arrived here, we saw a large meteor strike its very center a few days after, creating the imprint in the dusty soil of Eia' Bruk, _he explained. _Part of the meteor came crashing down onto our planet, making a crater in its descent. The two of us went to examine the odd glowing rock, when a strange glowing entity floated out. He cursed our race of dragons so that one of our offspring, when we were still living, would transform into a powerful monster, controllable only by one person. _

_So you're hoping one of your kids will be able to smash Xetyphaes?_

_Correct. But before you ask, the verns and my smaller friends the laiza aren't related to us. Their ancestors came later than we did. The verns came into existence after the dragons Uijar and Peoti lost their wings to a pod of yinrus. The laiza are smaller dragons who walk on two stubby legs and have shorter forearms than we. They would be the size of your eagles on Earth and they came from a different planet, one that was overrun with dragons. Lharom visited their planet and agreed to take them here._

Don scratched his head. _Interesting. This is all so complicated. _He stared at the moon again, and did a double take. He could've sworn he saw a darker blob peering out from behind Larui. _When does Eia' Bruk come out again?_

Yulakai started ascending again, for he had gone down too far. _In about three weeks your time. For us it will be a week and three eyas. An eya, so you know, is the equivalent of your measurement of time called a day. You don't seem to understand, _he commented when Don blinked, frowning.

_How does Eia' Bruk's orbit differ from Larui's, I wonder?_

_Eia' Bruk goes at a minimally slower orbit than Larui. When Eia' Bruk signals the impending Dragon Moon, it begins to move more sluggishly due to a planet, dead and dry, that passes close to Haradris. The resulting gravity pull slows its orbit, therefore revealing it to our world. When it has come completely away from Larui, my offspring who was cursed will see it and know their duty. _

_Fascinating. That puts another spin on astronomy, _Don remarked with a yawn.

"Yo Donnie, how's life down there in Geniusville?" Raph called from atop Yulakai's head. He looked like a cancerous hump on the dragon's head, and in a way, he could've been threatening his health by tugging so hard on the horns.

Yulakai noticed this too. _Please stop yanking on my horns! I do have nerves in those, you know. And if you were so afraid of flying..._This was the ultimate downfall of Raph's cool-as-ice countenance, for just as the dragon was about to finish his sentence, the inevitable lurch of the hump followed by a nauseating noise of disgust interrupted him. An indistinguishable blob of unsavory items plummeted to the rocks below. The scenery had changed dramatically since they had left the beihl.

Cliffs and the roar of ocean waves against stubborn boulders thundered down in the deeps. Spray flew up from the sides of the cliffs, the pounding waves sending it up nearly twenty feet high. Calls of strange beauty floated from the waters, the eerie notes tingling Don's spine. _Merfikah songs, _Yulakai murmured. In the distance sparkled a wide expanse of ivory sand and glittering shells wet with brine. The ocean rose and fell almost happily under the sky, like a cat playing with a string that kept being dragged away from it by the culprit child. Birds circled over the waters, diving into the sea and coming out with a wriggling sliver of silver.

_This is the Dikati Sea, the body of water that separates Fruruwur and Hseiaey. We're on the eastern side of the wide strip of land that connects the two, _Yulakai announced, backwinging as he landed on the sea grass that populated the sandy dunes. Don found it much easier to hop off the enormous dragon knowing he was going to land on sand than if he were going to swat another beihl tentacle off his leg. _We'll make camp here._

"Out in the open?" Lharom demanded, landing heavily on the sand. "That's not even remotely safe!"

_It would perhaps be better to lay here where we may see enemies as they advance upon us than to give them the cover of bushes in there, _Yulakai pointed out prudently, indicating the expansive lines of bushes and young saplings over two hundred feet away. The griffin grumbled and reverted to covey form before curling up on the salty grass, muttering to himself. Rijinn landed shortly after, less gracefully, with Saesha and Orcaine, who both looked quite tired. As Kadi finally hit the ground with her talons, Don's stomach reminded him of his duties.

"Maybe we can eat before we go to bed?" he suggested, blushing when his bowel section growled.

"Rumble in the Bronx," Raph chuckled weakly. His face, whether by Larui's light tricks or his airsickness, was a pale green color.

_I could help with that, _Kadi grudgingly agreed after Dakari nudged her in the foot. _But don't you dare take advantage of this, you hare-brained Neanderthals! _she warned savagely, noting Raph's look of pure devilish plotting. _Just get a fire going and I'll do the rest. _She raised her shimmering wings and became a creature of air again, making a beeline for the waves.

Don trotted the distance to the bushes to gather tinder, Orcaine following purely for safety measures. "Can't lose you this early," she explained, letting Don ride her the rest of the way. About five minutes into their wood gathering, Don picked up a faint rustle with his sharp hearing. He signaled Orcaine for silence, depositing his tinder on the ground before creeping toward some bushes, Bo at the ready.

There was a louder shuffle of leaves, some muttering accompanying it. "Of all the stupid things to send me to do…" it grumbled. Don lashed out at the approximate location of the voice with his staff, striking nothing. A moment later, there was a low canine growl and something flashed out of the vegetation, tackling him to the ground. "Alright, buster, what's the big…idea? Holy…" Then she got off him and ran back into the brush, barking like mad.

Don got up with Orcaine's help, scratching his head. "That was odd," he remarked, putting his Bo back into its holster.

"No way! You saw him?" somebody exclaimed. It was strangely familiar, tenor, sounded like…

"_Leo_?" Don said both mentally and physically in disbelief. Out of the bushes burst his brother, grinning from green ear to green ear like a madman.

"Donnie!" Leo cried, tackling him to the ground.

"Hey, ouch, I've already been flattened today! Get off, you weigh a ton!" He couldn't stop chuckling to save his life. Leo had never expressed such joy in his span of years. His brother got up off him, still grinning, and yanked Don to his feet.

"Excuse me, who's this?" Orcaine interrupted quietly, walking up to Leo.

"Picking up hitch-hikers, Don?" Leo inquired.

"Like you wouldn't believe," he replied. "Leo, this is Orcaine. We found her in a cave a while back. Orcaine, my brother Leonardo." The vern inclined her head politely, and he returned it with a curt bow.

"What do you mean we?" Leo asked.

Don smiled. "We've got quite a troop. Come on, let's go. Kadi's catching fish."

_Kadi? Oh, she's revealed herself already? _From behind Leo came a beautiful copper phoenix, his plumage gleaming in Larui's light. _Then that must mean Dakari's with her. _After the word Dakari had passed his mind, Leo shot away toward the beach like a bullet.

"They've met, I assume?"

_Yes, he saved your brother from a giant ocuthra._

"Small world." Jubilant shouts reached their ears. "Reunions are always so loud." Just as Don was about to turn to go to the beach, something else came out of the bushes. It was the same canine who tackled him first, followed by a small bearded man.

The dwarf looked him over. "Well, I suppose you'll be Donatello then?" he asked gruffly. The turtle nodded. "Bokur. A dwarf scholar at your service." With that, the two started a conversation on the properties of science.

Five minutes later, the whole group was seated, lying, or sleeping around the fire. Yulakai had immediately scared the bejeezles out of Bokur, who yelped and jumped ten feet high when looked at by the enormous dragon. Tahkar, the serulaf, was savagely tearing apart a large rainbow fish beside Lharom, who was also attacking his meal with gusto as a wolfena. Raph was sitting next to Rijinn, staring hard at the fire while his dragon companion chewed on a smaller fish, tearing at it with his claws. Saesha was perched happily enough on her father's shoulder, yawning. Bokur and Don were still talking about time space, confusing the rest with their genius gibberish. Orcaine was dozing, curled around Raph and Rijinn as a shield against gusts of wind that were liable to come up now and then. Leo and Dakari were exchanged stories about what happened to either when they had been separated. And Kadi and Hytis were both watching over their charges from a safe distance next to Yulakai.

After a suitable calm had established itself over the large group, Don started off by saying: "So, anybody seen Mikey?" Uncomfortably, Leo shook his head a negative. The rest gave the same responses.

_I wouldn't have seen him; I came from the Volcanic Wastes to find my first daughter, _Yulakai explained, blinking. _I don't doubt my mate has seen him, _he added bitterly. _Curse his entrails for enslaving my lovely Rainbou! _and he slapped the sand with his tail angrily.

"Well, where should we look first?"

_It would probably be wise to break up into groups again, _Hytis suggested. _That way, if one finds him, we may meet again._

"A problem with that plan, phoenix, is that we'd be right back where we started," Bokur grunted, puffing a smoke ring from his pipe. "One group would be with your brother, Donatello, and one would still be wandering."

"Then establish a meeting place," Dakari croaked. "Oh, excuse me, my throat's dry," he told Leo. "When one of our parties find Michelangelo, we will head for the place. The only problem would be that the one group wouldn't have any indication when we were ready. Set an amount of days to find him."

"How about Dragon Peak?" Tahkar asked, the undercurrent of a growl in her voice.

_Too dangerous,_ Kadi said, crushing the plan. _It would be far too dangerous. We want somewhere safe._

"Tell me why Dragon Peak is so dangerous then, oh wise and beautiful chicken," Tahkar challenged, crunching the spine of her fish.

_You want a reason? I'll give you three. If you hadn't heard, you sad excuse for a dog,_ the icunix shot back,_ Xetyphaes has planted outposts of soldiers, mages, and guards at any place a dragon would be seen. We'd be shot down before even getting there._ Don nodded grimly in agreement._ Number two: Dragon Peak has long since blown its top off. There was an eruption almost four years ago. And it's still active. _Tahkar made as if to reply, but was given an immediate 'shut up' look by Raph._ Number three…There are treacherous geysers scattered around the volcano. They're hidden by rocks, so it would be too late before you even noticed you were on top of a tower of burning hot water._

"I suppose you've got a better place then?" Tahkar retorted, spitting a fish eye at the bird.

_We could try Fikah Island – _Hytis started.

_Inhabited, _Kadi said casually, cutting him off.

Saesha scowled. "Let him finish!" she growled.

_As I was saying, _Hytis continued, _Fikah Island wouldn't be a bad idea. It is inhabited, true, but the inhabitants aren't tightly guarded like the other islands and possibilities there are. Xetyphaes doesn't consider them a threat._

"How would you know if they _were _enemies of the Empire?" Rijinn asked.

_Risky, but we could attempt to change their minds…_

"Forcefully, I hope," Raph muttered with a devilish grin, grinding his fist into his open palm.

_Violence isn't always the answer._

"Yeah, but a good one." Tahkar sniggered.

"Well," Dakari rasped, clearing his throat several times before being able to continue. "How about Mount Kairu?"

_The location could serve our purpose, _Yulakai mused thoughtfully. _It does have streams in bounty, a forest Xetyphaes dares not send soldiers into because of its darkness, and there are caves and hot springs. However, we would have to go past a large enemy fort to get inside._ A deflated air settled over the party, and Bokur grumbled with dismay._ Perhaps even through. And we have many fugitives traveling with us, so it may not work._

"If we had Aeki with us, maybe we'd be able to sneak it," Raph muttered.

"No," Don stated firmly. "We're not bringing innocents into this." His red bandanna-wearing brother grumbled and subsided with a barely heard phrase that was most snidely directed at Don.

"Maybe I could help," Saesha inserted, raising her head, eyes glittering with ideas. "We could send one of the turtles inside, miming a hunchback under a cloak." Everybody perked up except for Orcaine, who was still sound asleep. "I could ride along in a fake supply pouch at his waist and direct all curious thoughts away with my telekinesis, therefore shielding him."

"That still leaves us undecided," Dakari pointed out. "How would we get through it? If there's only one person going through…" Silence reigned for a while. "And especially if we have Michelangelo with us, gods knows how many companions _he _picked up. Plus, how would an Empire guard react to me, Lharom, and a couple of dragons roaming the streets?"

Saesha harrumphed. "Well, that's no good!" she growled, fuming on Yulakai's shoulder. "We might as well just all out attack the place!" she grumped.

"Say, that's not a bad idea," Raph said with a dangerous grin. "I think it'd work." Leo shot him the 'shut up' look and he sobered.

_Not entirely. We still have Hytis' plan to consider, _Yulakai said, turning his head toward the phoenix.

"Or we could simply leave Mike for the dogs and continue on our merry way," Rijinn grunted sarcastically, receiving a fiery glare from Leo.

"We _could _fly over it," Leo suggested, attracting a certain shape-shifter's attention with the question.

"The fort? Highly unlikely. Their guards are shifted every hour to keep a sharp look out. At least a hundred archers patrol the walls to fend off aerial attacks. And they've got plenty more mages than you or I could ever take out," Lharom sighed, resting his head on his forepaws. "Trust me, I've tried it."

"What I'd give for Iwansi's invisibility powers right now," Saesha mumbled with a puff of black smoke.

"Invisibility powers we don't have," Lharom said sleepily, not catching the scornful note in her voice.

"Well, now wait. If we made an arc around the fort to avoid it, couldn't we get to Mount Kairu then?"

"Nope. Outposts for miles."

"If we flew high enough, the archers wouldn't get us," Saesha persisted. "And if we do it at night, nobody's going to see us."

"If we get there by the new moon, no, they won't. Larui's light's too strong right now."

"It'll _take _us about a week to get there," Tahkar snarled with a scowl.

"Sure, sure…"

"Will you WAKE UP?" the serulaf roared in his ear. The effect was quite comical. He jumped out of his doze with a wild squawk, shifting to his sparrow form. What was funny about it was that he must've miscalculated the shift. Its body was that of the bird's, but the head was still wolfena, and because he was resultantly top-heavy, Lharom's head was now on the ground, his body squirming around. Flushing red, he reverted back to his original animal form.

"What were you saying?" he asked, cleaning out his ear with a hind paw.

"I _said _it'll take a whole half of a cycle to get to the fort, am I _right_?"

"You mean moon cycle?"

"No, those things on wooden wheels called bidikas," Tahkar deadpanned. "Yes, the moon!"

"Er, oh, yes, yes of course."

"So couldn't we _fly _over the fort on the _new moon_?" she growled through gritted teeth.

"Yes, I said that."

"No, you didn't! You were half asleep when you told me it was impossible!"

He looked confused. "My dear, I told you it _was_ possible!"

The serulaf howled her frustration, then stood and tackled him to the ground, rolling around with him in the sand. "I'll teach _you _to sleep when I'm talking, stone ears!" she bellowed while tussling with him. Leaving the two to wrestle on their own, Dakari began again.

"Yulakai's black scales would be hard to spot in the night sky," he stated. "But Orcaine would be more difficult to hide. She is yellow, after all. And the glow of Saesha's telekinesis would show her like a candle in a dark room."

Leo perked up. "Maybe we could convince her to cover herself with mud? Let it harden?"

"That still leaves the telekinetic glow to be dealt with," Bokur grunted. "But I like the mud plan."

"We'll see how she reacts to that," Don muttered, glancing at the sleeping vern.

_What I cannot grasp is how we are to meet there without giving ourselves away,_ Hytis mused, ruffling his wings._ Somebody is bound to arrive there before the other group and do something rash._

_It'd be wise to elect a leader of the two parties we'll send out, _Yulakai said shortly. _We shall only do that tonight. It's getting late and you little ones need sleep._

"I nominate Leo," Don said immediately. Leo grinned in polite embarrassment. Raph opened an eye lazily and waved his hand in dismissal.

"Fine wit' me," he grunted, nestling his shell against the hollow between Orcaine's hips and her ribs. He laid his hands by his sides and exhaled wearily. A few seconds more and he was out cold, dreaming about who knows what. Rijinn went soon after, inserting himself under Raph's left arm.

"And the second group?" Bokur asked, sputtering when sand got sprayed on him. "Hey, you hooligans, go have a tussle somewhere else!" he bellowed at the two fighting canines. Tahkar growled a half-hearted apology before rolling head over heels onto Lharom.

_Well, the eligible candidates would be Orcaine, Dakari, or one of the two birds, _Yulakai said.

"Yeah, and whoever's the one that gets the most votes is kicked off the Island," Saesha added snidely. Don chuckled.

_Orcaine may be a bit hesitant, but I believe she could get it done when it needs to be. Dakari, you are brave, I give you that, _Yulakai encouraged gently, _but would you feel right for the task?_

The samurai shook his head ruefully. "I'm no leader," he admitted.

_And you're in no condition to bark out orders, _Kadi mothered him.

"Oh, hush, I'm nearly healed."

_Yulakai, before you ask, I'm not leading any expedition._

_Neither shall I, _Hytis said.

_That leaves us with Orcaine. Unless you would like to take it upon yourself, Donatello, _Yulakai said, staring at him.

Don blushed. "Ah, no, I'm just the mechanic…"

"Come on, Donnie, you're smart enough for the job," Leo encouraged.

"Leo, I don't want another incident like the one where you and everybody else took over my body," Don warned. Leo hid a smile. They really hadn't had a choice that time; Don was the only one without injuries and therefore the only vessel for the trick. Raph had slashed his leg open with a glass shard, Leo had a gash on his arm, and Mike had a broken leg.

"Don't worry, I'm sure none of us will do anything like that."

He was still a bit tentative. "I don't know, Leo, I'm not a good strategist…"

"Don, just shut up. You can do it."

"Can't we just talk about this in the morning?" he pleaded uncomfortably.

"A fine suggestion!" Lharom panted, covered in sand, dust, and scratches. "My word, I'll never sleep when _this _lass gives a speech again!" He trotted away to the other side of the fire, tail between his legs. Tahkar bared her teeth with finality before flopping down beside Leo.

"He's a most chicken-ish fighter I've ever rolled around," she growled with contempt, shaking her spiky line of black fur along her neck.

_We'll further discuss this in the morning, _Yulakai informed them.

Don got up, stretched, and yawned cavernously. "I'm going to bed now," he announced. He staggered to Orcaine and sat down in the ring that was her curled-up tail, laying his head on her flank. She stirred a bit in her sleep as he sighed and closed his eyes. Saesha hopped off her father's shoulder and went to curl up inside Don's tail, which had also made a smaller ring inside Orcaine's longer one.

Raph snorted abruptly in his unconsciousness. "Mmmmm…" he grumbled, turning over. Yulakai got on his feet and trundled to the pale yellow vern, positioning himself behind her back. He lied down carefully, not wanting to upset the sleeping turtles with the thud he would most certainly produce by flopping down onto the sand. Leo and Dakari moved closer to Orcaine but instead of joining the others by her, they curled up on the sand about two feet away. Hytis and Kadi went to their respective charges, putting her wings over the two. Finally, Yulakai extended his huge wing and lowered it over the five by his side until it formed a tent.

_Goodnight, little ones.

* * *

_

"Okay, Palaesi, say Mikey!" 

"Meki."

"No, no, try again! My-key!"

Palaesi raised her wings and struggled with the shape of her mouth, forming circles, grimaces, and bared teeth. "Meki!" she ground out, slamming her wings down. The resulting gust of air sent Aireilei off her flight pattern.

"Hey, try not to upset the kid too much, Mike!" she called back. "That nearly flipped me!"

"Sorry," the turtle apologized, holding the little gunghir up. "Well, looks like that's as far as we're gonna get with my name, kiddo."

"Name's Palaesi!" she corrected.

"Aw geez, you get on _my _case for calling you the wrong thing…" he pouted. Sor rolled his eyes.

Iwansi came up beside Aireilei. "Hey, I'm smelling something unfamiliar…" she whispered. "And it doesn't feel good either."

She shuddered, her shoulder muscles' spasms tickling Palaesi's feet. "No, it certainly doesn't! There's something evil in this forest," she added, gaining altitude. "I want to be as high as physically possible if it can climb trees." Iwansi silently expressed her agreement, flying higher.

Sor squeaked when he discovered they weren't at his level any more. "Geez, warn a guy when you do that!" he shouted, rising to their height.

Meanwhile, below, Naicro, Kiara, and Bima traveled along the forest floor, delicately picking their way through slimy tangles of roots and thorny bushes. Once Bima had blundered into an enormous spider web and the larger inhabitant of the sticky invention wasn't happy with her at all. The little dragon, caught in the web's clutches, had squirmed around desperately. It was only by luck that Kiara had seen her in the web and smote the giant spider in half with her slender sword.

Another time, as they went deeper into the forest, Naicro nearly fell down a gorge full of the arachnids, having to take a galloping leap across. Kiara and Bima went across a thin log instead. Blacker than night birds sat in the trees, cawing their eerie calls down at the trio, and one nearly snapped off Bima's head, to which she responded with a hot reaction.

"Hey, beak face, keep your mug to yourself!" she growled, clawing at its butt. The bird landed safely in another sickly, black-barked tree and cawed at the furious dragon. "You picked the wrong day to mess with me, buddy." Naicro gently reminded the fuming dragon that they needed to move on. Who asked you, traitor lizard?" she snarled.

"I feel that this place houses an ancient monster of a sort," he explained. His eyes were darting every which way, a sign that he himself was more disturbed with their current state than any of the three.

"Don't soil yourself, grandpa," she snapped irritably, going in front of Kiara. The rukit was standing stock-still, large black ears perked forward. The other two stayed quiet as she swiveled them around. "I wish that evil would eat him alive..."

"Must've been my imagination," she said, relaxing and starting forward. With every step they took, light lessened. The leaves of the trees blocked almost all of the sun's rays, and those places where the ground took on a gray pallor they knew that its warmth hadn't penetrated to the soil in a very long time. In few minutes more, they reached a stream, stinking with the vile scent of carrion. Carcasses of birds, some wolfena, and, they noted with horror, gunghir lay on its banks. Bones also crunched with every step they took.

"I don't like this," Bima muttered, revulsion showing in her step. She skirted a bird, sniffing at the stream. "What kind of creatures could do this to animals and people?"

"Blood-sucking ones," Kiara mumbled, paling under her night-black fur. She pointed to a duo of large holes in the chest of a wolfena. "This place should be burned."

"Well, we'll have to go on. There isn't another way to tell if we're going the right way anymore, and I can't fly," Bima grunted, bravely hopping over the sickening stream.

"I agree." Naicro sighed and walked behind the two. Farther away from the rotting bodies, they found pits and dangerous snares, courtesy of Bima's quick reflexes. She had just stepped onto a place in the compost when a faint snap reached her ears. The dragon jerked back her paw and leapt away just as a web of thick, glistening web fell down onto the path.

"Spiders!" she hissed. "We're walking into our own graves!"

Kiara took out both swords, visibly steeling herself. "This is the one way out. We keep going."

"I'm blaming you if we end up trussed like holiday pigs in a web."

Just as she said this, a heart stopping wail nearby made them jump in shock. It was the terrified death scream of an animal about to leave the world. "I'd say our friend the spider just found its Little Miss Muffet," Bima ground out. Kiara said a reverent word in elvish as the wail was cut short by a hollow thump. "Let's get moving before it finds out we're here."

"Too late," Naicro whispered weakly. They both whirled around, and almost lost themselves to hysterics. Well, at least Kiara did. Bima was almost overjoyed to find an excuse to kill the vern.He was trapped in a cocoon of threads, his head nearly swallowed up by the glistening silk. Above his form was positioned a gigantic spider, its fangs already sunken into his ivory neck. The spider hissed at them, staining the silk with Naicro's bloody mixed with the bright green of arachnid poison.

"No!" Kiara rushed at the monster, dodging its legs that it punched out at her. The spider wised up just as she neared it and turned at a speed unbelievable for such a large creature, shooting silk from its spinnerets. The sticky material hit her in the chest, sending her flying back into a tree. It pasted her onto the trunk like flypaper. When she began to cry out, the spider sent another thread flying for her, getting her in the mouth and binding her muzzle shut. Satisfied that it had both dinner and dessert, it waited for the poison to take effect on Naicro.

That was its first mistake. Because of Bima's size and the low visibility, she had escaped its notice. Now, as she crept along the composted soil, she thanked Leo silently for giving her ninjitsu lessons. When she was nearly on top of its swollen butt, she opened her mouth and sent a stream of flame at its spinnerets.

If you've ever heard a spider scream, and I doubt you have, let me assure you that it isn't a most pleasant sound. You could compare it to a cat's caterwaul, only more high pitched and dare I say it has more volume that a lion's roar near your head. The result of Bima's quick thinking left her nearly senseless. The smell of burst spider flesh is worse than most other stenches you could think of, so both her hearing and nose were assaulted with horrible things.

The spider buried its rear in the ground to stop the fire from burning any more into its precious spinnerets, but Bima did her job too well. The spider was now completely unable to bind its victims with sticky silk. Acting again, with her ears ringing, Bima ran to Kiara, whose nose was almost plugged by spider thread. She was obviously finding it harder and harder to breathe. The dragon reared up and clawed the web off her feet, carefully flaming the rest off her arms. With a frantic effort, the rukit ripped the silk off her nose, gasping for air, no matter how pungent it was.

Turning their attention back to the spider, the two ran at it after Kiara had recovered a modicum of strength. "Die, you sick monster!" Bima roared, digging her claws into its eyes. It screamed again, putting its opponents out of commission as far as hearing goes. The spider reared off Naicro's prone body and, hissing with pain, skittered toward Kiara. Again it made the same mistake as before, only this time, Bima was under its belly because she had fallen backward. The dragon opened wide her jaws and gathered a deep breath. A second later, Kiara, who was backed up against a slimy tree, its bark digging into her spine, saw the spider lifted off the ground by a hot white plume of blue flames.

The scream was so terrible it nearly burst their eardrums. The spider, its bloated bag almost entirely eaten away by searing fire, writhed on the ground, hissing and clicking in its agony. Disturbed by the sight and revolted by the smell, Kiara plunged her sword deep into its head, pulling it out and repeatedly hacking at its jointed legs until it was disembodied and maimed.

Bima turned away from it, holding back her bile, and bounded franticly to Naicro's side. "Can you hear me, Naicro?" she asked. "Naicro? If you die, I'll be happier than Claws..." She pressed her paws into his back and with effort, wiggled him. He showed no movement. She ran to his head and smacked it.

He sluggishly opened one eye and Bima grumbled in disappointment. "Can you take the spider thread off me? I believe I am still able to walk," he mumbled through a half-closed jaw. Heeding the warning glare from Kiara,Bima ran along his back, dragging a claw through the thick, sticky webbing and splitting it down the center. She helped him wriggle out of it. Kiara grabbed his neck and pulled steadily to get him on his feet.

"How'd it get you, Naicro?"

"I was off guard," he sighed. "My fear often gets the best of me." He took a step forward. "And I must apologize for not explaining why I did what I did back at the castle. It has been on my conscience ever since." The vern inhaled shakily. "Xetyphaes...he knew where my mate had been hidden."

"You have a _mate_?" Bima exclaimed, while snidely making a comment that the person should jump off a cliff.

"Yes, her name is Orcaine, and a kinder female I've never met. I asked an elf to keep her safe within a crystal deep inside a cave. Doubtless Xetyphaes was bluffing, but such was my fear that I had no problem trusting his threats. He made me constantly report as to where we were going, finally telling me to guide us towards the ruins. And there, he nearly killed me and Hiph Bima. Me because I was showing signs of instability as a spy, and Bima because she was noticing my increasing jumpiness."

A sudden clicking hiss aroused them from their ambling walk. "We need to move faster," Kiara whispered harshly, picking up the pace. The trio loped down the path now, vanishing just as hoardes of spiders dropped down behind them.

* * *

I'm sure to have an angry mob at my house tonight. Torches, pitchforks, and all. Review please! I know you silent readers are out there! C'mon, the more reviews, the faster the chapters gets up...(nudge nudge wink wink)

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


	16. Parting Ways

**Disclaimer: **As you probably well know by this point, there's no way in heck Peter Laird would give up his money-making turtles. Which means a scrawny teenager wouldn't have any way of gaining them. Hence I don't own the Ninja Turtles. No suing, you silly people, I didn't do anything wrong.

A/N: And here we are with another chapter! I did change what happened to Naicro, and changed Bima's behavior toward him. Now everybody hates Naicro because I got the sense to assess his betrayal like a real author! The credit goes to the people at Stealthy Stories for putting up a thread that reminded me of it. Thank you all, my reviewers, and the responses are now at Stealthy Stories! Oh, and _Italics_ are thoughts and dream sequences!

**16.**

As they limped along in the forest, Naicro found it increasingly difficult to keep up his stumbling walk. Twice now he nearly fell, only saved by Kiara's supportive shoulder. Bima had stayed behind him to guard their rear from further spider attacks. She'd fended off quite a few with blazing flames now, a couple close calls giving her scratches. The vern's eyelids began to droop. Thank the stars this poison worked slower than molasses, otherwise he would quite possibly be dead right now.

He sighed. As he expected, the two didn't get mad over why he betrayed them. When they _had _found of his traitorous intentions at the ruins a bit after Bima had been healed, they, with the exception of Mikey, wanted to rend him with a sword. But something he couldn't understand was why Xetyphaes _let _him leave his service without killing him first. Perhaps he didn't consider any of them much of a threat. That irked him. Why had Xetyphaes let the very dragon who nearly defeated him last time escape him? Naicro took a shallow breath. Obviously he had no clue what would happen to the biologic process of clutching with dragons, because there wasn't any way that the hatchlings could survive that mating process.

"Can you see any light at all, Kiara?" Bima called irritably from the back. "I'm going permanently nocturnal here!"

The rukit squinted into the bleak distance. "I see a speck, but I might be hallucinating." A clicking hiss came from the trees and Bima shot down another spider with a speeding bullet of fire that penetrated through to the heart, killing it instantly. "What's that one?"

"Number twenty-seven," the dragon sighed with feigned weariness. "Man, you'd think with all the early Fourth-of-July barbecuing I've done that they'd beat it."

"Excuse me?" Kiara asked, puzzlement evident on her features.

"Sorry, forgot you don't _have _Independence Day here."

"Maybe we will once somebody gives Xetyphaes the boot," she grumbled darkly. Naicro groaned and stumbled again. "Hang on, Naicro, just a bit further."

"Bit further my tail," Bima muttered almost inaudibly. "I wish that spider had eaten him whole," she grumbled acidly. Another hiss, another bolt of flame, and another dead-as-a-doornail spider fell to the composted forest floor. "Twenty-eight. Sheesh, when does Mirkwood forest end?"

Kiara gave her another confused look. "Say what?"

"Lord of the Rings, you wouldn't understand."

"I'm sure," she retorted dryly. "Now, keep a look-out for spiders, I see light up ahead!"

"You telling the truth, or is the pressure getting to you?"

Kiara sighed irritably. Bima was really treading on her last nerve. "Yes, that's _light_, and I'm not hallucinating," she growled, grunting as she heaved Naicro's heavy neck up so she could grip it better. The result almost made him fall. "Keep him awake, Bima, by any means necessary," she warned wearily, indicating his half-shut eyes. The little dragon eyed his tail with a malicious smile and nipped it, making the vern jump forward about an inch, all the sleepy motion gone.

Just then, several more low clicks and hisses met their ears and Kiara had to duck to dodge an amazingly agile spider trio. The arachnids landed on the forest path behind Bima, baring their fangs. She snarled at the three, opening her jaws. A soft rumble came from her belly and the spiders had an understandable look of 'oh shoot' on their faces as the tongue of blue-white flame struck all three in a row. "Thirty-one," Bima said, kicking one of the smoking, hairy carcasses.

"Alright, Naicro, c'mon, this last hill and then we're home free," Kiara encouraged the faltering vern. He inhaled and exhaled shakily, barely able to take a step further. She pulled on his neck, as they reached the top of the rise, coming out into broad daylight. The setting sun blinded them for a few seconds before they had the sense to get hurriedly away from the forest, all its evils left behind in the inky blackness.

"Where _are _we?"

In front of them lay a vast expanse of cracked prairie land, the dry brown grass rustling in the hot breeze. In the distance rising over a giant wood structure was an enormous volcano, belching smoke, fire, and ash onto the land. Far away several more rose in a line, ending with spectacular composite volcano, possibly hundreds of miles away. No herd animals could be seen in either direction on the unforgiving landscape.

"Not where we should be," Kiara muttered grimly. "That's the first volcano of the Dragon Peak range. The largest one, and the farthest, is where the High Dragons used to live. In other words, you, Bima. And that thing over there," she said, pointing to the wooden structure, "is an enemy fort."

"Well…jhadie," Bima said, stumped. "Where'd Aireilei and the others go?"

"My guess is south. And judging by the position of the sun…we've gone too far west in the 2 hours that we were in that forest." The little dragon, silent, stared at Naicro with almost evil amusement at his plight. His back end had collapsed, and his front was well on the way to being on the ground too.

"Kiara, there's something wrong with back-stabber boy here," she stated, poking his left hind leg. It didn't twitch. She stabbed it even harder with her claw, and he gave no sign he felt it, only letting his head drop further down. Kiara staggered under the weight of his large head.

Amid gasps, she managed to get out, "The venom must have something in it to completely paralyze the victim." The rukit's eyes narrowed. "Because he's a dragon, he's had more time…the stuff in dragons' blood keeps it from moving faster. But we don't have much time before he's completely paralyzed. Or dead. I doubt that the spider wanted him alive for very long."

"Yeah, well, why can't we just leave the no good bakira in the forest for the spiders to eat?" Bima spat, glaring at his hindquarters. Kiara frowned at her. "What'll we do? Search for a village or something?"

She furrowed her brow as Naicro's breathing noticeably deepened. "No, this climate is much too hostile for villages." Then she groaned and cursed with a smack to her forehead. "I bet they have antidote somewhere," Kiara commented ruefully, pointing to the fort. "But they'd sooner kill Naicro than give him the antidote…"

Bima glared murderously. " We _could _put him out of his misery right now…Alright, alright, I'm laying off. You'll have to go in alone…_and_ you'll have to be sneaky about it," the dragon announced slyly.

"_What_? Infiltrate an enemy fort?" she exclaimed incredulously. "Heck no! That's suicide!"

"You got a better idea, fearless leader?" The rukit grumbled out a 'no'. "Well, then, hop to it! I'll stay here and guard Wonder Butt from other giant insects that could be lurking."

"But…"

"But what, twit? You scared of a little ninja work?"

"Come again?"

"Ninja. It's what Mike and his bros are. Sheesh!"

Kiara gave her a death glare before dragging Naicro, not without grunts and groans a-plenty, to a safer spot away from the forest. There she deposited him on the ground. "Alright, I'm going in, but whatever happens, you'd better not come after me," she warned. "They'll do worse stuff to you than me."

"Shyeah, right. Whatever." The rukit sighed before trotting stealthily toward the fort. Almost five minutes later, she cursed herself. Her fur color would show up on the tan grass, easily spotted. What she'd give for Knami's cream pelt right now. Looking back at the distant form of Naicro, she started for the fort again.

Twenty minutes passed. Kiara was just edging along the fort wall when a face looked over the wall. She froze in fear and flattened herself against the rough wood, praying her tunic wasn't noticeable against the rough wood. The face grimaced and slowly drew itself back over into the fort. The rukit exhaled slowly. Luckily she had picked the shadowed side to infiltrate, else that guy would've surely seen her and sounded the alarm. And the sun was now almost gone. Darkness filled the sky.

She reached the stables part of the fort. How she knew? The stench of manure, and the sound of mooing teelas. She wrinkled her snout in distaste at the smell. Good grief, where do they dispose of the stuff? She soon got her answer. A pile of it, and she barely saw it, came down just in front of her face and landed with a sickening splat on a growing mound in the dirt. "Aw, gross!" she whispered, inching around the mound in disgust. Now that she was near the fort, she had to think of how to get in. Climbing the wall wouldn't work, she'd be a pincushion in seconds. She'd have to find some sort of exit, one rarely used.

Sighing, and taking a step, she started for the far corner when a rogue thought came to her mind. She could pretend to be a wounded traveler and go up to the gates. She scratched absently at her tunic. But…would they take advantage of her? Kiara shuddered in terror. Oh, mercy, _please _not that! No. That wouldn't work.

Taking her rapiers out, she held one up like a javelin and threw it as hard as she could at the wall. It penetrated the wood, sticking into it a half a foot. She jumped, grabbing hold of the handle, and threw her free rapier at the wall again. Pivoting and letting go of her other sword, she caught the hilt, swinging gently back and forth. She gulped her heart down as a watchman walked by. As soon as he was safely far away, she stealthily reached down for her first rapier, and yanked it out. The wood squeaked, making Kiara involuntarily cringe. When nothing was forthcoming on the guards' parts, she heaved her body over her rapier and placed her feet on the quivering flat of the blade. Bracing herself against the rough grain, she peered over the wall.

She had to keep from yelling in outrage. In the middle of the yard, where most of the guards were gathered, there were two poles side by side, and almost five feet apart from each other. Bound between them was a small, burnt sienna-colored rukit child, crying in fear. His fragile body, naked from the waist upward, was bruised with purple blotches. At least the bakiras had enough compassion to leave what trousers he had on.

Kiara cursed in anger as another guard came by, making her duck. The idiot must've been drunk with wine, because she was able to, when he passed, smack him in the back of the head with the flat of her sword, knocking him out. He collapsed with a soft moan on the deck. Checking for any others, she pulled herself over the wall, shoulders screaming as she lifted her weight. Once safely over, she wrenched her other sword out of the wood, sheathing it with its twin, and turned over the person she'd smacked.

A revolting reek came from him that almost made her lose what lunch she had left. Swallowing her bile, and pride, she stripped off his cloak, and after a few second thoughts, left the tunic alone. But she did push her swords to the back of her belt and take his larger, more cumbersome broadsword, so as to blend in. Grimacing at its weight, she strapped it to her sword belt before putting on the cloak, wrinkling her snout at the stench. "Okay, Stinky, over you go," she whispered, grabbing his hands and tugging fiercely. He was so heavy! Gasping, she managed to heft him up onto the edge of the wall, and stopped to catch her breath. Then, with a disgusted grin, she heaved him over, hearing the bone-shattering crack.

Now that it was fully dark, she hoped to escape notice. She was far shorter than any of the other guards, she acknowledged ruefully as she took in the view. Taking a last glance at the chestnut-furred child, she made her way to the ladder. Kiara saw it was obviously poorly constructed as she put her right foot-paw on it. It creaked as she went down to the next rung. When she reached the bottom, she had to run quickly into the shadows so as not to be seen. _Okay, where's the dumb infirmary here? _She entered a hallway, looking at the labels on the doors. _Hmm…Mess, barracks…Toilet! _The rukit quickly scampered past _that _room!

Finally finding her target door, she tried the latch. Unlocked. Good. Kiara opened the door and froze. _Uh-oh…_ A scarred doctor, who wore a black eye patch over his left eye, was attending to two injured guards. He turned his head to look at her, confusion written on his face. _Jhadie…_

"Summat the matter, Ghralik?" he rasped. _Ghralik. Great, I just had to get mistaken for a guy named Ghralik. _

She tentatively nodded. _Oh, think, Kiara, think, what're you going to say? _she thought frantically. _On the other hand…_The rukit reached behind her and closed the door with a click. "Er, I just, uh, was wondering if you could, um…point me to the…uh, spider poison antidote," she grunted in the most masculine voice she could muster. _I sure hope this guy I'm impersonating isn't a baritone!_

The doctor raised his eyebrow. "Got's a problem with yer voice there, Ghralik?" _Yatin. He is._

"No, I just…um…was yelling at the other guys."

"Fer what? Do summat wrong, did they? I didn'a hear no commotion," he admitted, scratching his head. _Jhadie! Just my luck they didn't have a scuffle! _

"Uh, no, they…" _Subject change, subject change! Think of something! _"What happened to them two?" she asked gruffly, pointing to the duo of injured rukits.

The doctor huffed and eyeballed her. "Yeh been 'sleep all day? That kid they brought in's got sum mighty pow'rful wat'r magic innim. Formed sum ice balls when they came to get 'um from 'is village. These two got smacked around pretty badly." _A mage prodigy! Just like Palaesi! _"Naow, what 'cher want with tha' spider antidote? Been doin' sum venturin' in the forest, have yeh? Mighty foolish of yeh, Ghralik."

"Please show me, he's, uh, barely hangin' on!" Kiara ground out urgently.

"Ghralik, yeh even know how t' apply the stuff?" The rukit gave a terse shake of her head. _Just show me where it is, you good for nothing…_"Right over there, in'nat jar." He pointed to a bottle of sickly yellow liquid. "Yeh just make 'im ingest the stuff an' 'e'll be fine. An' you should get summat goop t' put on yer throat too, Ghralik. Yeh sound terrible." The doctor handed the bottle to Kiara, who reached for it. _Time for this moron to shut up._

Kiara quietly put down the flask on a table and took out a rapier. "Nighty night, grammar nightmare," she whispered cheerfully, giving him a smack on the side of his head. His eye crossed and he fell back onto the floor. "Boy, I'm hating this undercover work." She grabbed the flask and put it in her pouch, opening the door and locking it once she was outside in the hallway. A roar of laughter came from the gathered guards, making her dash for the yard.

Trying hard not to stand out in the crowd, she peered over a guard's shoulder, nearly blowing her stack. Two arrogant, cruel rukits were needling the boy with their spears, poking the tender pads on the bottoms of his bloody feet. Kiara gritted her teeth with anger. Every time the sharp point made contact with his tender skin, he cried out and tried to bring them towards his body, stopped by the ropes that held them outstretched. _This has to stop…_

She let the broadsword fall to the ground and moved her rapiers back in front. Roughly elbowing the antagonists out of her way, she stalked toward the poles. A hush fell over the mob. "Hey, Ghralik! Get'cher stinky butt outta there 'afore we stabs yeh too!" one jeered.

Kiara stopped near the crying child, staring down at him. He craned his neck around to meet her with watery blue eyes. His gaze seemed to send a message across it: _Help me! _"You're all a bunch of bakiras!" the rukit bellowed, losing her masculine imitation. Several cries of "What the…!" and one even said "Grief, I swears he was a male jus' this mornin'!" "What reason do you have for antagonizing him?"

The two with spears stood there, sneers on their faces as she drew her swords. "What's it to yeh, Ghralik?" one growled. "Yeh knows we got t' give 'im to the master!"

Kiara snarled and darted forward. With deft movements, she slashed the ropes and snatched the boy off the ground. Suddenly, somebody came up behind her, yanking her cloak off. A collective bunch of whistles came from the group. Swears replaced the whistles as she dashed for a shocked, perverted rukit.

"Hey, git after her! She's gonna ruin our chances of – " The speaker was abruptly cut off by a rapier running through his throat. The stricken rukit fell forward, blood gushing from the major arteries. Enraged roars came from Kiara's left as five guards rushed her with their lances and swords. She jumped agilely over one lance, slashed off the hands of the owner, and ducked a broadsword with a chuckle.

"Where'd you learn to fight?" she taunted, parrying a strike. "My grandmother could do better!" The boy in her arm squeaked with fear when a lance angled for him. Kiara hopped to the left, avoiding the thrust, and brought her sword in a downward sweep across the shoulder of the offending lance-man. He fell with a howl of pain as she jumped onto his back and vaulted up to the deck of the fort.

Arrows whistled past her ears as she ran across the wood. One narrowly missed her leg, embedding itself into a guard nearby, who hadn't enough time to move. She was getting a stitch in her side now, and breathing was harder. The rukit slammed into an obstructing guard, knocking him over the wall. A distant crack told her he was as good as dead. As she rounded the corner to start running for the gatehouse on the second level, she saw it was cut off. Turning around, she found her other way was blocked as well. She cursed.

"Got yeh now, you thieving whore!" one spat, arrow trained on her. "Hand over the kid and we migh' jus' let yer off easy." A few chuckles from the person's comrades told her that her gender was completely against her. _The exact situation Mike was in. Man, my luck stinks. _The boy shuddered in her arm. He was getting colder by the minute. _It's not cold tonight, what the heck is he doing? _Kiara wondered. Regardless of the child's motives, she brought up her sword with a snarl. There was no way she was giving up escape and Naicro's cure now.

The rukit was whimpering now, his body getting so icy that it was a battle to keep her arm around him. "What in Claw's name are you doing?" Kiara finally whispered, looking down at him. His eyes were watering, and not because of his wounds. A faint blue glow surrounded his slight frame, sparkling in the warm darkness of the night. Several curses rang out as a few of the guards backed away.

"He's at it again!" one yelled, breaking away for the ladder. A few seconds later, cries of "Holy hela!" and "Run!" filled the air as bullets of razor sharp ice flew from his tiny hands. Many fell under his barrage, the frozen water embedded in their throats and hearts. Blood made the wood slippery as Kiara, almost shocked into a stunned daze, got her wits together and started running toward the ropes that held the gate tightly shut. However, the many on the floor level weren't so stupid, and raised their bows and spears.

One arrow zipped past her head, going through her right ear. The sting was enormous for such a small hole, and the blood trickling down into her ear obscured her hearing somewhat. She rolled, avoiding several more trajectories, reaching the portcullis. She slammed her fist onto the lever, swinging the gates open into the walls with an echoing slam. Safety notwithstanding, Kiara sheathed her weapon and slid down the chain leading to the massive doors, landing with a heavy thump in the dust.

Leg muscles screaming, she sprinted for the grass where she could find temporary cover. More arrows and poorly aimed spears thudded into the dry dirt behind her. Kiara looked back for a brief second at the fort, which was now an angry anthill of activity. Torches were being lit, bellows heard, and empty threats uttered from the superiors hurled at the guards, incompetent though they were. The rukit gritted her teeth and turned her sights back to the black line rising against the waning gibbous of Larui.

Abruptly, she tripped over a thick root in the ground, taking a face plant. Forcing her weary body upright, she ran as far as she could before collapsing behind a huge speckled boulder. As Kiara fervently prayed they wouldn't find her, a rustle in the dry grasses came from the right. Lifting her tired right arm, she grabbed her sword and held it out, pointing it toward the sound.

* * *

_She whirled and snarled at her attacker, a large wolfena, bloodthirsty and hungry. With a warning growl, the pup backed away from the ravenous carnivore, but he kept advancing on her. Finally her rump ran into a solid wall of tough soil, barring her escape. Fear suddenly showing through her decidedly brave countenance, she franticly glanced left and right for an opening. No such luck came. Ready to face her doom, the pup turned back to face the wolfena, her black fur ridge raised and puffed out to its maximum._

_Just as the wolfena leapt to bury his fangs into her neck, he disappeared, as did the scenery around her. Now she stood on a rocky ledge on a volcano. Ash and smoke rained from above, and every once and a while a flaming ball would tumble down from the fire-heights. Confused as to her dream's change, she looked around. A rumble traveled up through her paws and into her skull, sending a shiver down her spine. Abruptly, she heard a noise unlike the rest come from behind. Turning slowly around, the pup chanced upon a curious sight: a dragon, its color blurred by smoke and ash, stood next to a small child, its race also unable to be discerned. On the dragon's other side was another, similarly resting its hand on the dragon's side. What could be seen was strange. The left person had a shock of dark brown hair, while the one on the right seemed to be tinged red. The surroundings made it difficult to see._

_She opened her mouth to ask what was happening, but the inquiry was silent. Her voice gave forth no noise. The dragon nodded grimly to her before a startling transformation took place. It grew almost ten times its normal size, white eyes glowing through the smoky ash. Still the children showed no fear, their hands now resting on a muscled thigh each. Before the sky shattered and an ivory crescent moon with a dot in the empty space pierced through the haze, she glimpsed a rainbow dragon on the slopes, fighting gravity with torn wings._

Tahkar jerked awake with a snarl, raising her hackles like needles. It took her approximately five seconds to recall her dream, and where she currently was. Dawn's rays had yet to be seen. The sky above the horizon was colored a sickly gray. Stars winked in and out of the lingering night blackness. Larui could be seen retreating behind the trees and forestry.

The serulaf got up and yawned, showing her teeth. She stretched her forelegs, then had a good roll in the warm sand before shaking herself out vigorously. Tahkar, feeling nothing better to do with her time, looked over their camp. Leo was now humorously sprawled spread eagle on his plastron, Hytis perched on top of his carapace. The phoenix's long curled tail was wrapped around the turtle in a circle. Dakari was rolled in a ball, Kadi's wing shielding him from the elements. Orcaine had moved during the night, now resting on her back, paws in the air. Raph had refused to give up his cushion, by the looks of it. He was draped over her stomach, head resting on her rib cage. Rijinn was curled up in the space between Raph's legs.

Don and Saesha had stayed in their original positions. Somehow, though, the turtle had burrowed a mound of sand behind his back, which currently hid his shell from sight. As Tahkar looked around for Bokur, she spotted him next to Lharom, currently in griffin form. The dwarf was nestled comfortably in Lharom's downy neck feathers, a smile of utmost pleasure on his red-cheeked face. The black bulk of Yulakai was nowhere to be seen. Confused, the serulaf yawned again, on her feet.

At least she'd have time to hunt for breakfast, she grumbled inwardly, trotting toward the waves. The cool water lapped at her paws almost playfully, the pull of it enticing her to come in with it. Small mollusks fluttered around in the deeper water, their white shells catching her eye. Deciding that clam was against her sense of diet, she made her way toward the more rocky parts where she would find tide pools. At least there she could find abalone!

When she arrived at the tide pools, she could see many little creatures flitting around in the calm, clear water. Every now and then an octopus or two would stir up the sand into a submerged tornado. Crabs scuttled along the bottom, poking their pincers inquiringly into every nook and cranny they found worthy of exploration. Anemones opened and closed their flowery mouths. Feeling slightly curious, Tahkar poked her snout into the water. She immediately withdrew it, snorting water out.

"For the love of…" she muttered, taking a breath this time. The serulaf put her whole head underwater this time. Her view was blurry and undefined. Finding this disturbing, she jerked her head back out to see if she was going blind. Seeing that her eyesight was flawless again, she frowned and repeated the process. Baffled by the results, Tahkar took her head out once again, staring at it.

_Never swum underwater before, Tahkar? _The serulaf jumped to find Yulakai staring at her through deep red eyes, half-submerged on the shoreline by the pools.

"Be quiet, you scaly imp!"

The dragon blinked. _I was only observing your confusion, little one. I merely wanted to know what you found intriguing._

"Now you know, so go back to whatever you were doing!" Tahkar growled, stalking back towards the camp.

_Would you _like _to learn how to swim?_

"Don't be silly! I know how!"

Yulakai raised his head and smiled. _Then why don't you? I can read your mind, _he informed her when she stopped short. _Don't be so ashamed. After what Hytis told me of your knowledge about the draconic history, it doesn't surprise me that your pack wouldn't teach you to swim. Now, would you or would you not like to swim?_

Tahkar scowled darkly, having no answer for the question but the fervent 'no' she so desperately wanted to say. "Well…I guess so," she relented, trotting back to the place where he was. "But don't you dare tell the others about this, or I swear on the Claw I'll slit your throat."

_By all means try it, but I am sufficiently armored against canine claws. _Tahkar took a nervous look at the lapping seawater, shifting her weight from paw to paw. _Come in, it's really not that difficult, _Yulakai encouraged, extending his head. _If it makes you feel any better, I am here to catch you if you falter, _he reminded kindly. Taking a gulp, Tahkar bolted into the warm water, leaving the shallows almost instantly. In her surprise, she forgot to paddle and went under.

Panicking that she wasn't able to breathe in the crystalline liquid, she floundered around, trying desperately for the surface. Air bubbles escaped her mouth and nostrils as she sank. Just then, a gentle pair of paws encircled her and lifted her above the water into the air. Tahkar snorted and coughed water out, sneezing and feeling efficiently embarrassed from her terror. _I told you I would never let you drown, yes? _

"Well, you sure fooled me!" Tahkar retorted with another sneeze.

_Here is a tip, dear: take a deep breath before going under water. To be on the safe side, I shall hold you while you are underwater. To keep it from going up your nose, you must learn to blow bubbles out your nose whenever you happen to feel it going too far. Let's try again, shall we? _Yulakai gingerly submerged Tahkar after she took a large inhale. The clear water was still strangely blurry to her eyes, but it was easier to keep from panicking this time.

She felt water inching its way up her nose and snorted bubbles out. Invariably she did too much and lost all her air within two snorts. The dragon pulled her up again. _No, regulate it, dear. A small amount does the largest of good. _With that tidbit of wisdom, he gently put her under again. Tahkar felt the waves above tickle her mane by making it wave back and forth like grass in a breeze. True to Yulakai's advice, she waited ten second intervals between each snort, finding it a better way of keeping her head.

All too soon the dragon lifted her up. _I am off to find all of us some breakfast. You may, if you like, get shellfish for breakfast as well. There are also wild fruit bushes in the trees. _He set her off toward shore, and she paddled for all she was worth, feeling relief when her paws touched sand. Feeling a smothered sense of accomplishment, Tahkar waded out of the water, and once completely on land, shook herself furiously. Droplets flew everywhere, pelting the dry sand and nearby patches of salty sea grass. She felt like a foolish, puffed up porcupine.

As she walked back to the camp, her still-damp black ridge of mane flopped around like a slab of rubber. Annoyed, she shook herself again. "Bad hair day?" somebody grumbled sleepily. Tahkar found herself being blinked owlishly at by Leo, currently still under Hytis' talons. "Why am I on my stomach? I could swear I went to sleep on my side." He attempted to turn over but the added weight of Hytis prevented him from doing so. "And how the shell did _you _get up there?"

"Well, seeing as you can't move, I'll enlist some one else's help," Tahkar grunted, walking toward Don. She could tell just by Raph's grimace that he was a grouchy sleeper. Sighing, she nudged the turtle in the head with her wet snout. He groaned and mumbled and incoherent phrase, twitching his hand. Deciding on a rougher course of action, the serulaf grabbed his arm with her jaws and pressed ever to slightly on the tough skin.

"Hey, ow, that hurts!" he cried in a hushed tone. "My arm isn't on the menu!"

"Yeah, well, sea food and fruit is," Tahkar growled. "Get your lazy butt of the sand and let's go get some shellfish."

Don scratched his head, on his feet in a matter of seconds. Saesha didn't move. "Well, you certainly didn't have to bite me to get my attention."

"Hah. You sleep like a rock, Donatello."

He grumbled and stretched his stiff joints. "If I were a rock, your teeth would be chipped." Tahkar huffed at that and trotted away toward the tide pools. When they both got there, Don frowned. "Now, how do you plan to get those things off the cliff face?" he asked, pointing at a gathering of mussels attached to the rock.

"Well, I was thinking more along the lines of crabs, but those will do too. Just whack them off with your staff."

"Whack them off?" he asked incredulously. "They'd fly into the water!"

"And I'd go get them," the serulaf finished. "Now, get swatting, you! I'll only stay this voluntary until the rabbits come out of their burrows!" Don took out his Bo, wound up for a swing, and hit a shellfish with all his might. A sucking crack resounded as it was removed forcefully from the cliff and sailed into the water, making a plop of a splash. Tahkar ran and jumped off a rock into the ocean, coming up with her prize. She swam back to shore and dropped it on the sand. Don examined his staff. "Next!"

About ten minutes later they had a sizeable pile of mussels on the sand, their shells gleaming wetly. "How do we get them back? Tahkar grumbled, nosing one. Don scratched his chin thoughtfully, and looked around.

"Well, any palm trees around here?" he suggested.

"What, you want to weave a basket, now suddenly masterful sewer?" she snorted.

"Not really. I was just thinking of tying the leaves together to form a sort of sled which I could drag back."

"Or you could ask me," Saesha said, appearing out of nowhere. Don jumped back with a yelp, as though he'd been stung.

"Shell, Saesha, you scared me to death!" he cried.

She eyed him disapprovingly. "You're ninja, right? How the claw can you get scared?"

"Easily!" Don retorted rather lamely. The dragon rolled her eyes and levitated the shellfish into the air. Just then, a loud, low chirrup made them all look out to sea. As they searched for the culprit, they saw a black scaly head breach the surface, the momentum of his launch carrying him into the air. Yulakai roared with pleasure and let gravity take him back, muzzle first, into the deeps. The large wave produced swamped the trio on shore. The next time he emerged, he was carrying a large fish the size of a full-grown man. To the dragon, however, it was more like a small trout.

They watched him spread his enormous wings and bring them down with a powerful down beat that made even more ripples in the water. Airborne, he flew to the campsite and unceremoniously dropped the fish right into the middle of the group. It quickly became pandemonium when the fish's tail started flopping around and spraying sand everywhere. Raph awoke with a bellow of anger, scrambling off Orcaine like greased lightning, causing Rijinn to tumble off his shell. The vern, now unmistakably awake, rolled over and opened her mouth to ask a question but it was promptly filled with white sand. Hytis squawked in surprise and fell backwards into the shallow pit Leo had made in his own dash for safety. Bokur yelped and dove for cover behind Lharom. Dakari, in his yet weakened state, could do no more than sit there and get a scouring. Kadi shielded him with her gleaming wings, all the while roaring out complaints at Yulakai.

The senior dragon grinned at her, obviously in a better mood than last night, and went back to open water, diving in with a huge splash, his tail vanishing. "I'd say we don't need help waking them up to make breakfast now," Saesha muttered. "And from the chaos over there, I think it'd be safe to stay here until somebody puts that blasted fish out of its misery!"

Raph inevitably did the honors, jumping on the fish's flailing form and stabbing it in the skull with a Sai. "If that overgrown dino comes back, I'm gonna give him the what for!" he growled, extracting his weapon from the feebly struggling fish.

"Well, I must admit it was quite unorthodox," Bokur called from behind Lharom's hefty figure. Oddly enough, the griffin hadn't been the least bit disturbed by the fish and was currently snoring his cares away, loudly I might add.

"Unorthodox and downright rude!" the turtle retorted, getting off his quarry with disgust.

"At least we've got breakfast," Rijinn ventured with a feeble smile. Raph glared at him and stumped away to find some firewood.

"It appears to be safe – Oh, never mind. We might as well just camp out here," she grumbled, setting the mussels down. They soon saw the reason. Yulakai was coming in with an even larger fish, ten feet long and wriggling with the strength of a blue whale.

"Take cover!" Dakari bellowed, doing his best to dive aside as the catch came down with a thud. This time, the black dragon stayed, pinning his breakfast with a strong paw. "Warn us when you're bombing the camp!" he cried from behind the shelter of deadweight Lharom. With a powerful smack of his paw, Yulakai effectively broke the fish's spine, making it go limp.

_If you'll excuse me, _he said happily, _I shall eat my messy meal elsewhere. _

"Please do!" Bokur shot back. He trundled away about twenty feet, yet his tail was still intruding upon their camp.

_I must fight the urge to freeze that thing, _Kadi muttered privately to Dakari.

_Oh, come now, he was only getting food, _Hytis defended.

"At the cost of our beauty sleep!" Raph grumped, coming out of the shrubs with a sufficient amount of tinder and branches.

"We might want a few stones," Saesha said, coming up on the group. "The fish will take a while to cook and I doubt even you will want to turn a spit."

"And we must gut it," Dakari pointed out, standing. With a wild squawk, he fell over.

_Do yourself a favor and just cut off your legs, _Kadi said dryly. _They're not doing you any good at the moment. _

The rabbit samurai scowled. "Can you stop railing on me even for a moment?"

_Not when you're as weak as a two day-old chick. _He snorted, but crawled with dignity to the fish. Taking out his short sword, he located the (A/N: Pardon the term, but I looked it up and it said to do this.) anal opening and carefully slit it vertically from that point all the way up to the head. He called Rijinn over for help and the red dragon was coerced to stick his paw inside the fish and wrench out its guts. With a sneaky grin, he gently removed the entrails and placed the slimy mass near Lharom's head. Then he ever so slightly pried the griffin's beak open and waggled one end of the guts into his mouth.

The ticklish feeling took effect immediately and made the griffin wake in a tizzy. "Whoa, oh, holy mackerel, what was that gross feeling, I…ugh!" He shuddered, puffing out his neck feathers until it looked like his head was being engulfed. He gave several owl-like hoots from his black beak before eyeing the conveniently innocent Rijinn sitting next to Dakari, watching the rabbit being to skin the fish. "Can't say I'm happy about the wake-up call, fellas." Then he spotted the entrails of the fish and gobbled them up hungrily.

"Get your own, lazy buzzard," Saesha growled when he eyed the fish Dakari was now skinning. Lharom grumbled and got to his feet, springing into the air and arrowing for the open water.

"Got 'cher rocks," Raph grunted unexpectedly from the left. He had a large slab in his arms, smooth and gray. And from his exerted pants, it was very heavy. He dropped it in the center of their gathering with a ragged exhale, and collapsed on his rump.

Almost an hour later, in the hot morning sun, the group had satisfied their stomachs with mussels and pieces of fish flesh. Lharom, Saesha, and Rijinn were picking the bits of meat still left on the carcass off. "Well, I'm stuffed, I dunno about you guys," Raph sighed, falling back onto his shell with another sigh of contentment.

_Me as well, _Hytis agreed, cheeping sleepily.

_At least I'm not so full I can't waddle, _Kadi commented snidely, giving her friend a suggestive glance.

Yulakai settled on his haunches, letting out a thunderous belch in the process. _Now then, we must discuss this splitting into two groups again. Leonardo, you shall be in charge of one, Donatello the other. _The turtle protested with a squeak but one look from the black dragon silenced him. _You don't give yourself enough credit, child. You _will _be leading the second group, _he said firmly, quelling Don's fish-like gaping of the mouth. _Now, who is comfortable with being with Leonardo?_

Dakari attempted to stand but failed miserably, plopping down. "I am, with no doubt of him in me!" he declared fervently, receiving a nudge from Kadi in his back.

_Don't overexcite yourself, _the icunix scolded.

Raph sat up laxly and slowly eyed both of his brothers. "No offense, Leo, but I think I'll go with Don." Leo nodded, as if expecting this choice.

Saesha landed on Don's shoulder and pretended to swat him in the side of the head with her paw. "Somebody's got to keep you out of trouble," she quipped as he grinned uneasily, still not particularly comfortable with being appointed leader. Rijinn scooted over until he was next to Raph, his choice obvious.

Bokur harrumphed. "I suppose I'll stay with the green-eared fool over there. He sure is grinning like one," the dwarf snorted.

Orcaine lowered her head humbly. "I'll go wherever I'm needed really," she said, face contrite as though she had committed a crime of some sort. Yulakai nodded agreeably.

Tahkar looked over the two groups. "I'll go with purple eyes over there," she grunted, jerking her head in Don's direction.

Lharom raised an eyebrow and lashed his tail. "Seeing as you've got no fliers, I'm going with Don," he said, dipping his head with a wink.

Hytis looked at Leo, eyes glimmering brightly. _I promised to take care of you, and I will not break it now, _he said softly, nuzzling his charge's arm.

_We have Lharom, Saesha, Raphael, Rijinn, and Tahkar with Donatello. And Bokur, Dakari, Kadi, and Hytis with Leonardo. Orcaine, you are hereby in Leonardo's group. _Yulakai flared his wings briefly. _And I…I shall travel with Donatello. Are we clear on who is with who? _

"Yes!" chorused twelve different voices.

_Good. Here is where we must part. Remember, when the next new moon comes you must be at Mount Kairu. If you are not, I must tell you something I neglected to mention last night. The group that gets there first must be ready to send somebody inside the fort._

"Why? Raph demanded, on his feet.

_Because, if we do find Michelangelo, we will need a plan for what to do afterwards._

"Such as a plan of attack on Xetyphaes' palace!" Dakari said as it dawned on him.

_Precisely. I would like to know what those bakiras are planning for our crippled world._ Yulakai slapped the sand with his thick tail._ By now they will have noticed that we are rallying our forces, but what puzzles me is that Xetyphaes hasn't sent anything after us, excluding the beihls that relentlessly pursue us. They are just to keep us busy, I assume, while he perfects his master plan. We don't know what that plan is, so I'm thinking he has some sort of clues as to what it is inside the fort. Fort Kairu is one of his main outposts._

"Why didn't 'cha tell us that last night?" Raph cried.

_You were extremely tired, _Yulakai said, puzzled as to his outrage. _I did not think you would have liked another subject for the meeting. _Raph grumbled in agreement and quieted down. _Now, while we search for Michelangelo, there is something I wish for you, my son, daughter, and Orcaine, to do. You must open your minds for a radius of five miles. That way you can sense a draconic mind nearby. I'm willing to hazard a guess that my first daughter is with him. _

Orcaine nodded. "It's a good plan, Father," she said, adding the title as a sign of respect. For even though she was a vern, she was still distantly related to the dragons that first came to Haradris.

_Very well. Say your good byes, and then we must leave. _

"Rijinn, keep Raph from slicing off Don's head when he gets angry, alright?" Leo quipped, grinning at his brother, who gave him a sullen glare. Rijinn nodded with a smile. "Saesha, I'm counting on you to keep Donnie out of trouble."

"Yes sir," she retorted sarcastically, giving him a fumbling salute.

"Hey Leo, keep them swords from cuttin' your overgrown tail off!"

"Yeah, I love you too Raph."

By now, Raph and Don were on Yulakai's wide back, the dragon having rejected Raph's want to perch on his head again. Lharom stretched his wings as Tahkar eye Yulakai. "How do you expect me to travel with you if I'm the only one without wings?" she snorted. The dragon smiled.

_Easily remedied! _He reared back on his haunches and stretched out his forepaws, grabbing the serulaf around the middle. She squawked in surprise as she left the ground. Leo's group skittered to a safe distance as the dragon spread his wings and brought them down in a smashing downbeat that distorted the air pressure. _Farewell, and good hunting! _he added, veering away to the northeast. The last thing Don and Raph saw before breaching the foggy cloud cover was Leo waving vigorously with both tail and arms.

* * *

Aaand, seperate parts again! What joy it is to be overrun with OCs! So many I have to write three-sectioned chapters...again. Man, I hope you're happy, Muses. (growls) Anyway, I will not kill Naicro in such a lame way again. I promise you that. So stupid of me. One of my friends, after I told him about it, declared that it was a sad way for a dragon to die. I agree now. (Naicro: "Thank the Lord.") Having said that, I will try my darnedest to get the next chapter up quicker. And by the way, we have officially exceeded fifteen chapters AND the one-hundred thousand words the entirety of Tatsu Morph was! If I'm not careful, it could be over thirty again. Oh all you readers out therrre...now would be a good time to revieeew...

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


	17. Musical Cheers

**Disclaimer: **I have never and never will own the TMNT. Man, these disclaimers sting mondo bad…rub it in, why don't you! (grumbles)

A/N: It's been a month. A whole stinkin' month. Sheesh, stupid writer's block. I wrote a song for this one, and I rather like it. (grins) Thank you, my faithful reviewers!

**17.**

'…_What…IS this, Kiyo?' she asked, confused. 'How…can I speak to you like this?' The purple dragon looked very puzzled._

_)I'm not…sure…( Kiyo struggled in return. )Can Bima and Iwansi do it too?(_

'_As far as I know, yes.'_

_)Is this strange sensation…communication?( Kiyo asked with delight. This was exhilarating! So many long months had passed since they had hatched from their eggs and just now they were learning to speak with their consciences. It was very exciting, but he wasn't certain if Rijinn was able to do it. He hadn't spoken a word or made a sound since his hatching. )Perhaps we can…ask Rijinn a question or two?(_

_Saesha looked at him. 'Question? What's that?'_

_)I heard it in the _birejji_,( Kiyo stated knowledgeably. )One of the senseis asked his student for a question once. I was hiding in…the bushes.(_

'_Oh. Maybe I can ask…you a question,' she said._

_He smiled. )Where's…Rijinn?( This mind speech thing was very hard to figure out. He had to know who to project his thought to._

_Saesha pointed with her tail to the end of the plants where the ball of yellow light in the sky is closest to the ground. 'By the…um, cold blue stuff.'_

_)Oh! I know…that word too,( Kiyo said. )I think it's called…water.(_

'_Wadder?'_

_)No,( he persisted gently. )Wa-T-er.(_

'_Watter. I think…I've got it now.'_

_)We need some…lessons on this…stuff.(_

_Saesha glanced at him again. 'Lesson?'_

_)Another…time, _shisuta_,( he said with a smile, sliding down the hill on his paws. It would be nice if he knew how to use those big skin flaps on his back. Iwansi learned how to float in the sky yesterday. It was quite exciting. Bima tried too, but she's so big she barely got off the ground. They'd have to help her soon. Kiyo trotted across the long water trail, stopping to drink. He should go to the _birejji_ every day to learn new things. That way maybe they can teach Rijinn how to speak too._

_He reached out with his mind. It was a new thing he learned on his own one day when Bima had gotten lost in the plants. He couldn't find her with my eyes so he had to find her with his mental senses. Somewhere nearby he could feel Rijinn. Kiyo started walking again through the leaves and cool branches. The little colorful feathered things were making high noises above him. HeI'd have to ask Iwansi to get them some for _hirugohan. _That was another new word he had learned at the _birejji _the other day. It was when the two-legged creatures ate their food on a wooden board. He liked the name so much he had taken it home._

_He heard loud sighing to his right and turned through the leaves to see Rijinn's dark red scales overpowering the green of the bamboo. )Brother?( Kiyo ventured tentatively, stepping out towards him. He stiffened when Kiyo's mind made contact with his and he was attacked with roiling emotions, most of which were fear. )Brother?( he asked again._

_He stared at Kiyo through wild eyes, mute even in his mental senses. He had shut him off from all his thoughts. )Please…brother, let me in…I want…to help you,( he said haltingly. This speech was hard work!_

…_Help?_

There! He said something! )Are you alright…brother?( 

_Brother? He seemed confused and scared._

_)What's…wrong, Rijinn?(_

_Scared. I want…home._

_)You're not…making sense, brother.( Kiyo linked his tail with Rijinn's and nuzzled his neck. Then he opened his mind to him, but he got no images. He heard a soft voice come through the darkness, sad and melodious. It made him think of a mother. He had seen one once. She was playing with her little child on a hillside. Both were making that funny sound that two-leggers do when happy._

_Home is where that person…is, Rijinn said with longing._

_)I don't understand, brother.(_

Sounds of shouting abruptly slashed through the peace of Kiyo's dreams. He moaned as the agonizing ache in his abdomen made itself known again. Why wouldn't they let him sleep? Hadn't they already done enough to him? He had lain there motionless on the stone floor of his cell for some time now. And why not? It hurt too much to move. And he couldn't bear the weight of his shame if he opened his eyes and saw Xetyphaes staring in with that cruel smirk on his red face.

They had done hours of experimenting on him with magic and knives, and for the life of him, Kiyo couldn't understand why they had taken him. Didn't Xetyphaes hate Aireilei more than the rebels? Didn't he wish for more dragons to add to his one female? A twinge found its way into his stomach. These had been happening more and more frequently as of late. He groaned and curled up into a ball to ease the painful pressure in his bowels. This was hell on earth.

As he lay there breathing heavily, he reached out with his mental senses to see if he could find any of his siblings near his prison. He had been doing this periodically for several days now, but each search brought him nothing. He felt Xetyphaes' ever-watchful presence about twenty feet away in the room the demented ruler had named his lab. Kiyo's sharp hearing picked up the scraping of knives on a sharpening stone. He cringed as another wave of dull pain washed over him. That sound usually meant something bad.

Footsteps began coming away from the lab, getting louder with each passing second. They were light. Kiyo had come to learn that light steps meant something wasn't going to happen to him today. The heavy thudding ones were often a sign of dread. And for good reason. When the green dragon had first gotten here, he fought like a demon with his wind magic, but was easily subdued by Xetyphaes once on the stone table. Therefore, most soldiers feared him and his wrath. But not now. Kiyo had been enormously listless in the past seven days' time. He couldn't imagine why.

"Well, my little friend," came the laughable voice of his antagonist right by the bars of his cell, "I've something to show you!"

_)Leave me alone.( _The dragon gritted his teeth as his guts started hurting again.

He heard a sinister chuckle. "Oh no, I _insist._" Power gripped his thin frame, lifting him off the floor and uncurling him. He gave an involuntary whimper when pain stabbed his lower torso. Dreading what he might see, Kiyo opened his eyes ever so slightly. All he got was a blur of mixed colors. He couldn't help but think he was going blind. He did nothing but lay on the floor in a fetal position, not using his sight even when they took him out. "Do you see this, my dragon farm?" Xetyphaes crooned, using his pet name for Kiyo.

He brought out a small gray object, mottled with green spots. _)Is that…?( _Kiyo didn't dare to finish the sentence.

"Rainbou laid it just this morning, along with three others," he announced with a devilish smirk, stuffing the item back into his robes. The black jewel in his other hand flashed, releasing him from its grip. Kiyo hit the floor on his left side, dispelling what breath he had left in him.

_)You…bakira,( _he choked out, flinching as another wave of pain struck him in the gut.

Xetyphaes chuckled. "Now now, don't be so concerned about the hatchlings. When they come out in five days, I'll take good care of them."

_)I seriously doubt that.( _

The midget's presence faded from Kiyo's mind as he walked away, still chuckling in his evil way. The dragon cursed to himself. No living creature deserves to be under that monster's control. He would find a way to get his children out of here, whether he followed or not! Curling up into a ball again, he let his mind wander around the castle. Rainbou's presence could be easily defined as pure chaos. She still had her original mindset of a mother, but it was being stifled by her controlled personality.

The guards were nothing special. Just a bunch of dull-witted idiots parading around the halls and courtyards with their spears and lances. As he went through each room, he prodded the inhabitants' consciences with his own. In each he detected a sense of loss. One maiden wished so dearly to be free of this hellhole, but was held against her will. In a different place, in the palace jails on the other side of the area, rebels chained to walls longed for home. There was even a half-rukit child inside one of the cells, a shackle around her thin wrist.

Then, he found four other minds, those of his unhatched offspring. Two of them seemed…dead, somehow. _)Hello?( _he asked one. The dragon said nothing to him, but exuded primitive confusion, a sign of infancy. It was to be expected. In that moment of contact with his hatchling, Kiyo promised himself that he _would _get them all out of here. Eventually.

* * *

Leo's eyes snapped open, his body shaking with enormous tremors originating from his legs. He had been meditating for a few minutes, no more, no less, when a gigantic force of pain had slammed into his roaming mind. It was another mental presence, drunken with agony and purely writhing with shame. He had managed to catch a faint scrap of memories from the entity before it left him to ache in his spot on the astral plane.

Now, as he sat there on the boulder, staring out towards the valley where several herds of wild teela grazed by a village, he tried to sort out which memories were his and which weren't. He searched the deepest corners of his mind for a few seconds before chancing upon a piece that wasn't his. Frowning inwardly, he let his own conscience touch the other gently. Immediately, a scream of anguish filled his ears, repeating over and over a garbled phrase. Leo once again jerked back to reality, looking around.

Dakari and Kadi, who were sitting off nearby, were sleeping in the warm sunshine. They _had _traveled most of the morning after all. And for almost four days they hadn't seen hide nor tail of Mikey. The scream the turtle had heard didn't seem to have affected the sleeping duo. Barely reassured, he resumed searching for that memory. This time he dove into it, bracing himself for the loud noise to come. Nothing battered his hearing. He opened his eyes cautiously, finding himself floating lazily above a fortified castle.

The walls were dripping blackly with an ugly substance, running down the dirty gray bricks to trickle into a moat formed out of long years of the process. The towers, their spires hostile and mean looking, rose high above the unkempt courtyard. Unsightly guards patrolled the walls with spears. A couple sat by with skins of wine, laughing amongst themselves.

Leo flapped his tail around in the calm air of the place. He was sure there was wind, but this being a memory, and he being an astral being, he couldn't feel it. He willed himself to float down to the courtyard, drifting gently like a leaf from a tree branch. When he landed, he ran through the nearest wall, passing through a guard. The unexpected contact made him jump in surprise, but he continued through the next wall.

Here he found several sharp implements: knives, a scalpel, the basic surgical things. He passed over them, going to the table, a bloodied slab of stone. It was fresh. He leaned forward. It was a silvery red substance, pooling in an indent near the center. Leo frowned in concern. The only things he knew of to have that color blood were dragons, but what…

"'_Old 'im down, I almost got th' chains on 'im!" _somebody cried. The rattle of iron came from a hallway, along with several screams of pain.

"_Be careful, we don't want him spoiled for today's experiment!"_

_)No…please…( _Leo's heart skipped a beat. Where had he heard that voice before…? _)Don't do this…(_

"_Shut up, you whiny lizard." _A flash of light came from down the hall, along with a squeal of utmost agony. _Bring him to the table and get set up. I'll handle him once he's there," _the squeaky voice said with authority. Shadows appeared on the wall, along with a small, chained form. The first to come into the light was a small person almost two and a half feet tall, swathed in robes that were far too large for his frame. His red skinned face held a smirk on it, along with a sense of child-like excitement. Then came the two lugs, along with the prisoner.

Leo's mouth went dry. It was Kiyo. The green dragon was carelessly stitched on slashes that went from the base of his tail to the beginning of his intestines. The two guards slammed him down on the table, eliciting a whimper from the bottom of his throat. _No…_The turtle wanted to get away from this memory so badly, but he had to wait until it was cut off. He watched as the midget seized a thin knife in his hand and took out a black jewel with his other.

"_I'll get one this time, my little dragon farm," _he chuckled, aiming for Kiyo's gut. Leo gasped and turned away in shock when the knife met its mark.

_)AUGH!( _

"Leo! Leo, wake up! Please!" Dakari's voice pierced the nightmare, waking him up. The turtle sat up with a gasp, his whole body shaking. The samurai rabbit stared at him in concern. "What did you see?" Wide-eyed, Leo recounted the whole thing in his mind, keeping a silent front.

"I…I…"

Kadi scrutinized him carefully. _Don't worry, I'll see what his problem is…_He felt her probe his mind and heard her squawk in outrage. _How dare he! That monster! I'll have his guts for garters! How can one person be so sick…_The icunix spat curse after curse but it did nothing to ease Leo's horror. He had witnessed Kiyo being cut open for…for…The turtle stared at his hands with a detached air. It was…so wrong…He hugged himself fiercely, feeling Hytis' beak stroke his shoulder.

_It will be alright, _he said softly to Leo and Leo alone. _There will be a way to get him away from there. But right now, we must locate your brother. _The turtle shuddered and let the phoenix cover him with a wing.

* * *

"So, who's this little guy? Sure is cute!" Mike made ridiculous cooing noises at the little rukit, who hid fearfully behind Kiara's leg with a whimper. She shushed him, wincing as her ear throbbed, and gently picked him up. "Goochee goochee goo!"

Bima rolled her eyes disdainfully. "You have any idea how incredibly stupid you sound, doing that?" she grumbled.

"What?"

They were now safely away from the fort, having moved south a couple miles. When Kiara had been hiding behind the boulder, Bima had heard the noise and went to investigate it. The tensed rukit had nearly speared the dragon upon sight when Iwansi tumbled out, whispering furiously. Naicro was nearly gone and they needed that antidote fast. Relieved, Kiara let them take the vial to Aireilei, who was kneeling by his side. The vern's eyes were glazed like a cadaver's, unwinking and never moving. The white dragon forced his mouth open and smeared the gooey substance inside the vial on his tongue. He began reviving almost immediately when the mercenaries from the fort arrived.

"_There she is!" the ringleader bellowed, jumping at Kiara with his sword raised for a powerful downward slash. Iwansi jumped in front of him, using momentum to rocket into his chest, making him fall back to the ground, landing on his rear. The yellow dragon snarled, baring her teeth, as her sister came up beside her._

"_Go on, get the dirty traitor out of here!" Bima yelled venomously, charging at several of them with fire streaming from her jaws. She took out three with the fireball that came out, whirling on her hind paws to avoid a swipe from an axe. Her scarred hide rippled as she gathered herself for a leap. Just as she left the ground, an arrow passed under her, its diamond point gleaming in the firelight from the torches. Aireilei's trajectory buried itself in a squat figure's chest. He went down yelling like a banshee._

_Iwansi, cornered at the boulder, made rude noises at the people in front of her. "I ain't gonna take that from some pipsqueak!" one said, running at her, his lance lowered. She disappeared in a split second, the confused rukit slowing down. "Where'd she…" Fire rained down on him in bullets, reducing the poor sap to ashes in moments. The other two were promptly slashed across the face by sharp silver claws. They screamed in pain until she went for their furry throats. Both corpses, major arteries spraying their red blood, went down with thuds._

"_Eeew," she moaned, spitting. Kiara, weary from her flight from the fort, helped Naicro limp away along the line of black trees. If the vern had been black as well, they would've escaped notice._

"_Oh no you don't, ya slut!" A scarred elf-like creature jumped in front of them. "You give me that kid or I'll turn ya into yer own grave!" As if to prove his point, rocks started levitating around them, steadily closing in on them. Naicro raised his head, a rebellious look in his bright eyes._

"_Do you think that your rarely seen earth magic can stop us?" he asked sweetly, a completely different tone than Kiara was used to hearing. "Do you?"_

"_Darn right I do!" The ground rumbled._

"_Foolish," the vern commented. Before Kiara could blink twice, Naicro firing globules of white substance from his person at the mage._

"_Holy mother of griffin!" he cried in surprise, forming a barrier of rock. Naicro chuckled, increasing the barrage until the rock disintegrated. "Dragon magic!" the mage stammered fearfully as he backed away, tripping over a root. He died with a wild scream as he was covered by the stuff._

_Kiara and her passenger turned wide eyes on him. "How…" _

"_All who harness it may use it," he explained. "Now, hurry! He was not the only one here!"_

_Meanwhile, Mike was surprising his victims as he popped out of the tall grasses only to smack them down with a nunchaku. "Hello, my name's Michelangelo and I'll be your beat-down instructor today!" he chirped cheerfully, bending backwards to avoid a swipe from an angry gunghir's dagger. "No no no, you're doing it all wrong! First you have to…stand like this!" he disappeared into the grass and reappeared behind the guy. "Booga booga!" he shouted at full lung capacity into the hapless mercenary's ear._

_The gunghir straightened immediately, clutching his elf-like ears in pain. "Ow!"_

"_And then…You take a nap!" Mike dealt him a whap to the back of his neck with his hand, knocking out his victim. He grinned with accomplishment, looking around. Many of the fighters were either dead or out cold now, but a few were still fighting. He witnessed Aireilei pick up a fallen sword and lop off her opponent's head. The turtle cringed appreciatively. He was just about to turn around when he heard a familiar whistle and ducked his head inside his shell as a broadsword whizzed over him. "Hey, watch the head, dude!" he cried, peering out to see a rukit miss his arm by inches. "It's the only one I've got!" _

_As Mikey dueled the angry wolfman, Kiara and Naicro took out another mage, with the help of Palaesi, who had been nearly forgotten in the melee. The gunghir had been tottering around when she saw the little burnt-sienna rukit behind Aireilei, shivering. Curiosity overpowering the fear welling in her tiny heart, she stumbled toward him. That was when a shot of fire missed her by centimeters. The fire mage Naicro was trying to kill was putting up a fight to be reckoned with. Palaesi's volatile toddler temper flared within seconds and the fire mage found himself surrounded by a small tornado of wind, smashing him to the ground and into rocks. When she had finished, the mage was dead, a trickle of blood coming out of his muzzle._

_Kiara ran back, picking up the little gunghir and the rukit, who clung to her arm like it was his lifeline. While sprinting back to Naicro, she glanced back at the fort. Dread filled her heart as she caught sight of the mob of dirty warriors, distant, but deadly, rushing at them. "Guys! There's more coming! We have to run!" she roared._

_Aireilei, arrow on string, looked for herself and cursed. "Jhadie! Mike, Sor, quit messing around!" she commanded, lighting the arrowhead on fire. She aimed quickly and let it go at an overly eager gunghir, who had jumped above her, ready to maim with his thin rapier. The shot exploded on impact. Bits and pieces of the unfortunate person rained down from above._

_The turtle smacked another enemy down then jammed his weapons in his belt, dashing toward Aireilei. "Alright, let's go, let's go!" he cried, jumping on her back and jabbing her sides with his heels as he would a horse. Sor finished slashing the torso of his for before sheathing his sword._

"_Knock it off! Bima, Iwansi! We're leaving!" The two dragons finished incinerating five more opponents before the yellow one took flight and Bima clambered into Mike's arms. Kiara, now on Naicro's back, signaled for them to leave. Then the vern streaked away from the battlefield, heading south. Aireilei launched into the sky with a powerful heave of her legs, Sor following._

Kiara shook herself out of the memory. "What? Somebody say something?" she asked in a detached tone of voice.

Bima inspected her with a scrutinizing eye. "I asked, what's his name?" she repeated, clearly annoyed.

"I don't know. Do you think I had time to interrogate him while I was running?" she snapped suddenly.

"No need to get touchy about it," Sor muttered.

"Fine, I'll just look for myself," Bima grumbled, closing her eyes. A few seconds later, she appeared puzzled.

"What?" Mike asked eagerly.

"He…doesn't have one."

Aireilei wrinkled her muzzle. "Strange one of his age doesn't have a name. I should think he _would _have one. But in any case, who wants to name him?"

"Brownie!" Mikey crowed loudly. The noise made Palaesi tumble off his shoulder in surprise. He quickly caught her.

"Are you kidding? That's a dog's name!"

The turtle harrumphed. "Well, if you think about it, that's what he _is_!"

"Khilol?" Sor suggested.

"Desert name. He doesn't look like he's from a nomad tribe," Aireilei mused. "Plus it means 'one who complains', which I don't think our little friend does often." The gunghir flushed red.

There was silence as everybody tried to think of a name. "Bob!" Mike shouted again.

"_NO _EARTH NAMES!" the white dragon bellowed at him. He shrank sheepishly, then held up his hand again but was silenced with a glare from Bima.

"Alright, alright, don't get your undies in a twist," he mumbled to himself, sitting down in the warm brown grass. A light breeze ruffled the foliage.

"How about…Heenu?" Naicro said. "It's an old name; it means 'red'." He looked at the child who was the source of the conversation. The rukit sat down on Kiara's foot. "Then again, I do not think it would work."

"Why not?"

"Heenu is the name of a killer to verns; he wiped out all but Orcaine and myself."

"Funny how that works out," Bima growled, looking at him suggestively. Iwansi glared at her.

"Jehk," Kiara whispered, looking down at her charge.

"What was that?" Aireilei asked, glancing at her.

"Jehk," she repeated, louder, "for 'hard ice'."

The white dragon nodded in satisfaction. "It works." Jehk looked up at her and smiled. "Doesn't talk much, does he?"

Kiara shrugged and picked him up. "I've only heard him make strange whimpering noises, along with quiet purling in his throat."

"Could be a mute. Let me check." Aireilei gently took Jehk from her hands and began the mental probing of his body.

Sor heard noises from Mike and looked at the turtle to find him playing peek-a-boo with Palaesi. "Where's the Mikey…There he is!" The little gunghir poked his beak with her index finger every time he came out with a devilish grin on his face. Then it became more of a face-making contest than a peek-a-boo game. Mike came out from behind his hands each time with a new expression, sometimes a suggestive grimace or a toothy grin. Palaesi, in turn, did her share of antics, flapping her wings and squawking like a crow.

"You'd make one heck of a baby sitter," Sor commented as Mike grunted like one constipated. The turtle pulled up the corners of his mouth with his fingers and stuck out his tongue.

"Bleah! Hey!" he cried when Palaesi blew his mouth full of icy wind, drying it numb. "'At's 'ot 'unny," he said with difficulty. The gunghir giggled and tugged his limp tongue with her two fingers.

"Silly Meki!" she chirped, climbing his plastron to give him a slobbery wet one on his scaly cheek.

"Aw, thucks, 'Ayaesi!" Mikey sighed happily. Sor and Kiara laughed as the turtle received several more. He sucked back in his tongue and began saturating it with saliva again.

Bima glanced at Aireilei, who was wrinkling her brow with concentration. "Does it _really_ take that long to investigate a simple non-social problem?" she grumbled, watching a beetle crawl along in front of her snout.

"If he has a physical ailment, his magic is probably shielding it from her," Naicro said.

"Thank you Doctor Phil!" The vern blinked. "Sarcasm is a foreign language to you, I see."

Suddenly, Aireilei's eyes snapped open. "Phew! That took forever!"

"Well?"

"He does seem to have a defect in his vocal cords."

"But…He was…practically _wailing _when I got to him!" Kiara muttered, taking Jehk from Aireilei's hands. He looked up at her with bright blue eyes, then perked his ears forward, breaking his gaze at Kiara. The gentle breeze and distant bird calls was all they heard.

Palaesi, also listening intently with her long ears, bounced up and down on Mike's plastron excitedly. "Noises! Pretty noises over there!" she babbled in the short, uninformative way of a four year-old. "Noises, noises!"

The turtle directed his yellow ears toward where she pointed, which was back the way they had come. "Now that I think about it, I can hear music!" he confirmed, a puzzled look on his face.

"Suspicious," Aireilei growled. "Iwansi, go see what's up. Be careful to stay invisible."

"Yes'm," the yellow dragon grumbled, cloaking herself. They heard a rustle of unfurling wings and then she was gone.

As Iwansi flapped stealthily to gain altitude, she caught the sound of flutes and other pitchy instruments on the wind. Interested, she arrowed in that direction, flying fast on a southern wind. Very soon she came up upon a wagon, and cheery voices singing in beat with the tempo of the music. The cart rattled along, pulled by a lone creature of blue green color. Many who know the animals of Haradris would name it as a quiffer, a raptor-like herd-beast with a long neck and short muzzle. The quiffer's bone-ribbed ridge bounced along merrily as it clopped along on its large hind legs. The forearms, tucked to the chest, carried a small basket.

Intrigued, Iwansi dove down to the caravan, spotting several rukits trotting along happily behind the wagon. The driver of the cart had a flute pressed to his lips and was playing a bouncy tune in the higher reaches of the instrument. The person beside him pounded a drum with her palms, setting the tempo and the skippers behind the cart sang in tenor voices. The song went something like this:

_Oh, I know of a short, fat, old man  
__He's red and he stinks something awful  
__He carries a purloined jewe-e-e-el  
__And he's really quite a pawful!_

_What's his name  
__Xetyphaes  
__We hope he explodes  
__What's his name  
__Xetyphaes  
__Somebody smack his nodes!_

_Oh, he's greedy and has two beady little eyes  
__He's no sense of all-time lows  
__He's got a big ol' be-e-e-e-lly  
__With a robe that trips his toes! _

_What's his name  
__Xetyphaes  
__We hope he combusts  
__What's his name  
__Xetyphaes  
__Fill his bed with rust!_

_His castle stinks like a stable yard  
__And his rooms smell real old  
__His bed's really du-u-u-usty  
__The covers are filled with mold!_

_What's his name  
__Xetyphaes  
__We hope he goes 'boom'  
__What's his name  
__Xetyphaes  
__Give him a poisonous 'shroom!_

Iwansi masked her laughter masterfully as she flew back to the place where they had gathered in the grass, landing on the ground in a heap of giggling wings and hair. "Well?" Aireilei demanded.

"Oh! You should hear their…their song!" she gasped as the singers came over the rise.

* * *

No Donatello/Raph part, sorry. I had no inspiration for that. But I did do a song for you all. (grins) It's a really lame ending, I know, but...Meh. Anyway, the TMNT Fanfiction contest is being held at Stealthy Stories this year; go see my bio for more information.

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


	18. Fiery Danger

**Disclaimer: **(sings) I don't own the TMNT…

A/N: Oh, bother! It's been a month again! More than a month even! I need to get my tail in gear…(grumbles) Well, yo guys waited so darn long. I didn't want to take more time in giving Leo a part because I've gotten writer's block for him. However, I do have Raph's and Mikey's part planned up through the next chapter. So be happy about that. I had to cut off at least a third of Mikey's part because it was too long and I wanted it for the next chapter. Plus I had a research paper to write.(grins) Enjoy!

**18.**

Raph crouched in the bushes and waited. This had been where they had seen them going. A day's worth of tracking. And if they were to lose them after all this, he'd be ticked off. A pleasant day breeze ruffled the leaves, whispering eloquent words. Words that Yulakai had said Haradris had forgotten long ago, that only the wind mages would remember. Words that could tell the mood of the very air itself.

Clouds drifted by lazily above in a blue-green sky. If there was one thing Raph had learned about this wacky world, it was that the things that were deceptively peaceful could only mean destruction. He knew blood was coming. That's why they had waited in ambush for twenty minutes now. And he was getting restless.

They had seen a troop of Empire soldiers marching this way. That could only mean trouble. When Yulakai had given them a mental picture of what he saw many hundreds of feet below on the hilly country, it revealed creatures they hadn't seen before. There were things that looked like anteaters, only ten times that size, burdened with bags and weapons. There were equine creatures with cloven hooves, small velvet antlers, and feline tails. There were squat and giant man-like people, clothed in spiked armor and cruel swords. And there was a wingless griffin in the lead, ridden by a cloaked figure.

Truth be told, Raph had been aching for a skirmish for some time now. They had been flying for at least four days straight since leaving the beach, only stopping to walk for long distances when Yulakai wearied of using the skies for transport. It was slow going on foot because the black dragon's legs were not as flexible as they would be on a younger reptile of his species. He claimed it was because his age was finally catching up to him. The only other time they stopped flying was for food. Tahkar and Lharom would go out hunting for game while the others waited at the camp, spent of all energy and full of bottled up boredom.

Nearby, a little red and green bird chirped uneasily in a stand of slender silver trees. Raph gripped his Sais impatiently, nearly ready to spring out of hiding and demand what was taking so long to the Empire troops' faces. Minutes passed without incident. The turtle focused his anger instead on an indigo-laced leaf bobbing on a twig in front of him, hoping absurdly that it would start on fire and burn. He lashed his tail, listening intently with his long red ears.

Faint sounds of jingling armor and swords faded just out of hearing, leaving him again in complete silence. _This is crazy! Why don't we just take them on right now? _Raph muttered to himself, leaning forward on his toes. _I don't believe this. I'll turn to stone before we even see them! _He then rethought that and shivered. No. Being stone would be most unpleasant, not to mention infuriating. Seeing what was going on before you without being able to move or speak.

He heard a rustle nearby and glanced to the right. First he saw the wing, then the rear, and finally Rijinn emerged covered in twigs and leaves. "So, what's the deal here? My leg's falling asleep!" Raph hissed.

The dragon sighed and sat in a pile of compost, bending around to pluck a leaf off his wing thumb. "Saesha still hasn't gotten back from scouting," he mumbled.

"For crying out loud, she's a telekinetic, isn't she? Can't she just contact us with her mind or something?"

"That's what I said, but she came back with her response of 'There are certain others who can hear that sort of exchange' bit, so I didn't bother arguing."

Raph growled, "Well, that's beautiful," then fell silent.

For what seemed like hours, they waited longer. The sun, white and cheery, rose higher in the sky, marking the mid afternoon section of the day. Raph stifled a yawn. Just as he was giving up hope of ever seeing the action of battle again, Saesha dropped down from the sky in a frantic panic. She was rambling on and on incoherently, saying something about 'fire' and 'broken'.

"Hey, get a grip, Saesha, and tell us something we _need _know!" Raph yelled, barreling out of the bushes, Rijinn not far behind. The purple dragon continued muttering and flapping her wings one at a time as though uncoordinated. "Um, Saesha? You okay?" Bewildered, the turtle watched as she fell to the ground and convulsed violently. "What's wrong with her?" he asked as Yulakai emerged from behind a stand of thickly growing trees.

He bent his great head slightly, sniffing his daughter, before slowly withdrawing. _She has been…broken, _Yulakai stated, a hint of confusion to his voice.

"Broken?" Don repeated, emerging from behind the dragon. "What does that mean?" He took on a troubled look and carefully picked up Saesha, who was still writhing like a worm.

"FIRE! Fire, war, death, soldiers…_Broken!_" the dragon shrieked, spouting smoke every now and then.

Lharom trotted out from the other side of the road, a covey now. He climbed up Don's leg, latching onto his belt and pulling himself up to his shoulder. "To be broken means that…Well, I'm not sure," he muttered, eyeing her critically. "It's been so long since I've seen a broken person before. The last one was before the reign of that accursed bakira."

_It means that she has had an encounter with a very powerful force, _Yulakai explained, blinking his red eyes thoughtfully. _They have had a mental grapple, and the other was more powerful. It broke her mind._

"That sounds bad," Don said, gazing at his now limp friend in concern.

_She will reconstruct herself in a matter of hours, but unless we can get a coherent reply out of her, we will have no leads as to where the army went._

"Will you people quit relying on such useless methods to locate the enemy and start sniffing?" Tahkar shouted crossly up ahead.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Lharom groaned, leaping nimbly down to the ground. "Give me some room here, guys. I'm going to become an agrion!"

"What the heck's an…" Raph began.

Lharom's body reformed itself like a blob of clay, pushing, pulling this way and that, until he was finished. "Phew, I'd forgotten how hard it was to become one of these things!" the strange creature said squeakily. The agrion was actually just about as impressive as a field mouse. It was a tawny plump rodent about the size of a full grown cat, with a short nub of a tail that had a plume of black fur on the end, standing up like a feather on a hat. Its paws were clever and long fingered, with large back feet perfect for jumping. A tuft of fluffy fur stood out on the chest, creamy and soft. Its eyes were large and black, a little pink nose twitching on the end of its short snout. Large, cupped, fluff-tipped ears spread out on the sides of its head. "What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at their stares.

"I'd never a guessed something so ugly could be something so ridiculously cute."

"Hey, watch it, buster," Lharom grumbled, displeased with the respect he was getting. "I've got teeth too."

_How did you manage to get an agrion's shape? _Yulakai asked curiously.

"Took me ages to even find one to touch!" The little rodent reared up on his hind paws, sniffing furiously. "Whoa, scent already! Move it, troops, let's go!" He bolted off, tail waving furiously as he bounced along the dirt road.

Don exchanged looks with Yulakai, then ran after Lharom and Tahkar. "Keep tabs on us, we'll signal if we find something!" he yelled as a parting shot.

"Oh, sure, leave me here, Donnie," Raph muttered, climbing aboard the black dragon. He launched into the sky with a few wing beats.

Below, Lharom ran like a demon-possessed unicorn, sniffing this way and that. The only thing that showed where he was was his large plumed black tail. "Anything?" Don panted, catching up.

"I don't think we need to look for very much longer," Tahkar whispered, eyes widening. "Look!" Dread filled the three as they spotted a growing cloud of ominous black smoke forming over the horizon.

"I hear screams," Lharom remarked, perking his ears forward. "Run towards the smoke!" he shouted in the diminished voice of his agrion form, bolting again.

"Hop on so I don't have to walk back here with you," Tahkar muttered gruffly, presenting her back to Don. He clambered on, grabbing a fistful of her black mane. Before she burst into a full-fledged run, Don inched down until he was resting on her muscled shoulders, remembering that a canine's spine moves up and down when running. Then she began galloping hard along the road, her padded paws making dull thuds in the hard dirt. Saesha bounced limply in his left arm like a rag doll.

Very soon they had topped the crest of a hill, getting closer to the smoke. Ashes rained down from above, making both squint. _Hurry! _Yulakai bellowed thunderously, diving in from above and going over the next rise. They heard his battle roar as they finally arrived at the next top.

"What the _Claw_?" Tahkar gasped, sliding to a halt in the damp grass.

It was pandemonium, simply put. Soldiers ran from hut to hut, putting fire to all they came across. Civilians, screaming, came from all directions young and old. Many of the enemies corralled young females and kept them in a huddle. Others had a group of males and small boys in a group, held back at spear or sword point. And in the middle of it all was Yulakai, Raph, Lharom, and Rijinn.

All fought like demons. The dragon used his tail as a mace, his claws and teeth like swords. Lharom located opponents and slashed them open with griffin talons when he found a weak spot in their armor. Raph worked at defending Yulakai's back. Rijinn could be seen darting around, his spine aflame, attacking random soldiers with fury.

"We have to help!" Tahkar snarled, taking a step forward.

"No, wait!" Don told her, pulling her mane to get her attention. "They have things handled over there. We need to help the captives."

The serulaf's eyes narrowed as she cursed. "They're taking some of the women away!" she hissed, breaking into a headlong gallop. The soldiers leveled their spears at her as she came running. At the last second, she leaped over the weapons, landing on one of their heads. At the same time, she deposited Donatello in the circle of females.

"Um…" he stammered, blushing slightly as they looked at him with wide eyes. "Here, hold this!" Don said, recovering some of his dignity as he shoved Saesha's unconscious body into one of the younger rukits' arms. He hopped out of their circle and whipped out his staff, swinging like a madman. With every swipe, he seemed to take out at least two. Tahkar finished off three more before swinging Don onto her back and loping after the enemies carrying struggling, screaming, hysteric females away for their own pleasure.

"Die, scumbag!" she roared, leaping onto one's back and ripping out flesh from his back. He died without a sound, his prisoner stiff with shock.

"Don't worry, we're here to help!" Don assured her before deftly holding up his Bo like a jousting lance. Tahkar ran smoothly into another of them, the turtle's staff running into his mid back. It hit armor, fazing him for a second before the stupid rukit shoved down his crying captive and unsheathed his sword with a grunt. "Make a wide turn, I want another swing at him!" Tahkar obliged, running full speed at the opponent. Don wound up and hit hard into the rukit's curved sword, digging his staff in. The rukit proved to be heavier than he, and as such, stood his ground while Don was ripped from Tahkar's back.

The turtle rolled to decrease the pain of the impact. Don hopped out of the way as the rukit brought his sword down into the hard dirt and grass with a whistling sound. The turtle landed on his feet, unarmed. He took a defensive stance, eyeing his bo. It lay fifteen feet out of his reach. He clenched his teeth and dodged another poorly-aimed strike, whirling into a roundhouse kick that caught his foe in the side. As luck would have it, Don also struck a spike. The thin piece of metal dug into his calf, ripping a gash in his leg.

He yelled in pain and jumped back a short ways. Blood trickled down in rivulets, staining the grass. The rukit came at him again, sword raised for a downward slash. Don dove aside, catching his bo up from the ground and flipping onto his feet in one feel swoop. He gritted his teeth as his foe charged again, readying to skewer the turtle. At the last second, he sidestepped and brought his staff around so hard that it whistled, hitting the back of the rukit's head with a thunderous crack. The unfortunate sap dropped, dead, to the grass.

Don stood where he was, panting heavily, tail wrapped around the cut. _Gotta get a tourniquet on this thing before it makes me bleed to death…_He put his staff on the ground and tore off his belt. Pain lanced up his leg as he bound the strip of leather tightly around the wound. _That'll hold for a while. _Favoring his injured right leg, he hobbled back to where Tahkar was waiting with the females.

"I have to go free the men and children," she announced when he arrived. Without another comment, she bolted for the next group, where the soldiers were readying a bigger force.

Don staggered once, righting himself with his Bo. He watched as the serulaf tore viciously into her victims, blood spurting everywhere. Spots began dancing in his eyes. He started to feel lightheaded. _Lost too much blood, _the turtle mumbled to himself, struggling to keep upright. He suddenly saw doubles of the worried images in front of him. They merged and separated several times before he felt his legs give way. He hit the ground with a thump, out cold.

Raph saw his brother fall from afar. "Dang it! Donnie went down!" he growled, striking out with his Sai at a soldier. Most of the force was diminished, but strangely, nobody seemed to be running a retreat. "Why the heck aren't we winning?" the turtle demanded, felling another.

_It is because their leader still prowls the battlefield with another group! They know she is coming!_ Yulakai bared his teeth and clawed out a soldier's bowels.

"She? There's a _chick _leading this?" he asked incredulously. "This whole _world's _gone bonkers!"

_I recognized her when we were flying. She is an excellent strategist and cold murderer who goes by the name of Binedri._

"Sounds like another funky title for Benadril."

All of a sudden, Lharom came galloping back, griffin ears flat against his skull. "I've seen her! Binedri!" he squawked angrily, yellow eyes wide.

_Calm down! Where was she going? _Yulakai questioned, sweeping a couple more opponents away with a hard tail strike and not even blinking an eye.

"Northeast! Toward the ruins…"

_Why would she go there? _Yulakai wondered, eyes narrowed. _Xetyphaes has no reason to visit that place unless he…Oh no…He can't have…_

"What?" Rijinn asked, dropping in, back smoldering. "'Can't have' what?"

_This is bad. We need to get moving to the ruins immediately! _Tahkar trotted up to the group, Donatello strung over her back, along with Saesha carried in the arms of a girl.

"Where are we going?" the serulaf demanded. "If it's to someplace we have to run, I can't do anything with Deadweight here bouncing all over my back."

_Well, we can't leave him here either!_

"So what do you propose we do? As we speak, we're losing precious time!"

One of the women piped up. "If you like, we could take care of him while you're gone," she said shyly.

Yulakai turned a flaming eye on her. _How can you be sure they won't come back for…pardon my saying, 'pleasure activities'? _

"Some of the other guys can wield a sword," another called out.

He lifted a lip. _Then you must promise you will hide. I cannot be responsible for the actions of rebelling enemy soldiers. _The rukits nodded as one and five came forward to lift Don off Tahkar. _Now, quickly, we must hurry!_

"Can't we just fly?" Rijinn asked, looking at his short legs. "I can't really run all that fast."

_You may, but not I. I am too large and would be spotted almost instantly._

"Then let's go already! What the heck is so important about some stuffy, dusty old ruin anyway?" Raph snorted, sticking his Sais in his belt.

Yulakai glared at him. _Be still! _he hissed, turning in the direction they assumed to be northwest. Then, he broke into a thundering gallop that shook the ground, making good time despite being an elderly dragon.

"Get on me!" Tahkar yelled, running in between Raph's legs. She lifted and tore away, with him hanging onto her black mane for dear life. Rijinn, indignant at being left behind, was flapping furiously to keep up. Lharom took a lithe, black and white spotted feline's form, running smoothly alongside them. After a while, Yulakai appeared to be slowing down to a soft trot. "What's the deal?" Tahkar panted.

_We're getting close. We must act more stealthily now. _He finally walked, padding on the grass._ I believe Binedri is also a telekinetic, which means we must veil our minds from her awareness._

"How do you do that?" Raph asked, puzzled.

The dragon stopped and turned his great head to look at the turtle. _You have not learned?_

"Well…maybe a little from Master Splinter, but I didn't really pay much attention," Raph admitted.

_You must concentrate on being invisible, in body and mind, by not making contact with those we are trying to destroy._

"Come again? What the heck does 'not contact' mean?"

_I mean contact one mentally, to attack their mind with a barrage of angry thoughts. You must not do that. Telekinetics are adepts at breaching your mind's defenses once you do make contact. They will break you without a moment's hesitation._

Raph scratched his head. "What happens if we do get…um, broken?"

_Reconstruction of one's mind will never be easy, for a mind is not an easy thing to break in the first place, except by those whom I mentioned before. Usually to rebuild one's consciousness, it takes hours of careful gluing of your memories. You have to locate your strongest, most prevailing memories. The ones that occupy you as a priority when you remember. Now, do not ask more questions. After the top of this hill, there will be no going back._

The turtle felt fire building in him; an eager, savage request for battle. He took hold of his Sais as they crept along the side of the rise, keeping low to the ground to avoid being seen. Yulakai motioned with his head that they were to make for a dip where a large stand of trees grew, thick and close together. Once they were all hidden sufficiently, the smaller, less noticeable people peered through the dense growth of leaves.

First they saw Binedri. A slender, raven-haired elf, she stood of medium height. Her amber eyes, catlike and slitted, darted around, piercing with her gaze. Binedri was clothed in a royal purple sort of skirt that had a cut all the way up to her hips, revealing her legs on either side. It hung on her waist from a chain adorned with jewels. Her upper torso was wrapped tightly in a bolt of black fabric that crossed in an X around her neck and over her…erm, bosom.

"One thing's for sure, she's a looker," Lharom muttered softly, in agrion form. Raph dealt him a backhand on his head.

Next, they observed her fighting force. Nearly forty orcs and rukits stood in a half circle around her. Binedri's mount, the wingless, ivory-maned, chestnut griffin, lay nearby lazily with half closed eyes, flicking its tail about. The ruins on which they were gathered had a statue on a stone pedestal before them. It was a crouched dragon (or used to be) missing its head, which lay in mossy pieces on the rocks. One wing was nearly gone from so many years of erosion. On the other hung strings of moss and plants. On the pedestal was a small indent for something.

The watchers listened intently as Binedri began to talk in a rich, lilting voice. "My servants, we have triumphed over the pitiful settlement that guarded this sacred place. I congratulate you on your wondrous fighting." The troops grinned at each other and elbowed their friends in pleasure of being acknowledged. "When we are done here, you may do as you like with the women." A chorus of chuckles. Raph grimaced and perked his ears forward even more.

"Today we stand here because our conquering master, Emperor Xetyphaes, has asked that we take the second Jewel of the Dragon for his battle against the heathens. You have done well in finding the first." Binedri held up the aforementioned item in the light. It was a topaz-like crystal wrapped in a slender golden lines up to the top. Raph's acute hearing picked up a soft growl from Yulakai. "And now the second is almost in our grasp!" Cheering roars rolled from their mouths as she put away the crystal into a bag at her hip, removing an oval object in the same movement.

Yulakai lifted a lip and showed his bared teeth. _That is a dragon egg! _he privately told Raph, radiating fear. _I had thought Xetyphaes could not find another male dragon! And he would not dare go after me! Could it be that he has…_

"My faithful warriors, let us bask in the light of victory!" Binedri shouted over the whoops, setting the mottled tan egg in the indent.

At first nothing happened. The only sound was the rhythmic hooting of the enemy. Then the watchers felt a faint vibration. Another. Then a violent shudder came from the ground. The stone ruins bucked and heaved. The pedestal cracked. The stone dragon crumbled, making raucous explosions as it connected with the hard ground and shattered into pieces. From the ruined pedestal came an eerie shriek. Then there was silence. Raph tensed as Binedri took the egg from its indent.

Then there was a hiss of escaping gasses under pressure and the whole pedestal blew sky high. Rocks rained down from on high. Most of the trees took the impact, but Raph had to dive aside to miss being flattened by a slab of stone. He heard a loud cheer and looked out from the bushes. In her hand, Binedri held a crystal like the first, only it was hexagonal, round in shape and was a deep garnet shade.

_I will not watch and let this woman take my kind's past away! _Yulakai let loose a deafening battle roar and barreled out of the trees, crashing into the soldiers at top speed. Binedri looked stunned for a moment but regained her cool countenance.

"Hello, Demon Eyes," she crooned as he stood where he was, having felled ten of her men. "I had heard you were about."

_Be silent, bakira! _Yulakai snapped, hot wrath showing in his crimson eyes. He prowled back and forth over the bodies that had been in his path when he charged.

"Foolish lizard," the elf taunted. "Do you really think you will be able defeat me on your own?" In that moment, Raph, Lharom, and Tahkar ran out of the growth. Tahkar bared her teeth and made her hackles stand up at her next comment. "I see you found some allies. A freak, a mutt, and a fugitive. Oh, plus that little pink lizard."

"Pink _lizard_?" Rijinn sputtered, flapping his wings. "I'll show you pink lizard!" he growled, back bursting into angry flames of crimson. He jumped off Raph's shoulder and shot at her like a bullet, aiming for the gold-laced jewel in her hand. With a telekinetic blast, she stopped him short, freezing him in midair. No matter how he struggled, he couldn't get free.

With a swift jerk of her hand, Binedri flung him onto the stone, initiating the end of the staring contest they had started. Raph bellowed and ran at her, suddenly finding his feet grounded after two steps. "I can't move my feet!" he snarled in surprise, jerking his legs.

"Me neither!" Lharom squawked, beating his wings futilely in an attempt to get off the ground. Yulakai made no move, knowing he couldn't, and sat where he was, glowering viciously at the elf. Without breaking stride, she summoned a block of rock with her mind, floating it over Rijinn as he lay there groggily.

"Surrender the Dragon Kin to me," she said coldly, glancing at Raph, "or I'll crush him."

* * *

The caravan that Iwansi had observed from above happened to be a troupe of Players who traveled across the countryside setting up acrobatic shows and plays for the younger audiences. There was the driver, flutist, and commander of the band of mischievous miscreants, a quick-to-grin brown rukit with white splotches named Rholyn. The drummer, Ilon, was a quiet, young, green-eyed pearl rukit. The three dancers, siblings named Unai, Unoi, and Unei, were all sandy yellow females both loud and obnoxious. Meikle and Orom, a married couple, did the costume-work and props for the caravan. Their cynical son, a dark chocolate brown boy named Choleil, herded the animals that included teelas, sheep-like creatures called gorals, and a few bovines. Alongside the herd would be two wolfenas raised from birth by the caravan, nipping the heels of the animals to keep them moving.

Lastly there was a fiery elderly lady with indigo eyes who sat in the back of the wagon and made snide comments about the mess-ups Unoi, Unei, and Unai would make, called reverently Mhal. And it turned out that Mhal was the one who saw them first, despite Ilon and Rholyn being in the front. "H'lo, Rholyn! You dirtbag, do you have yer eyes sewn shut?" she yelled over the music, banging the poles that held the canvas roof up with her gnarled walking stick. "I jus' saw something disappear into the bushes!" The music continued without interruption. "Rholyn?" Still no reply. "Oh, I swear, even _my _ears are better than his…" she muttered scornfully, gathering her skirts and hobbling toward the front.

"What's the matter Mhal?" Meikle inquired over the loud drumbeat.

The old lady shot her a glare and continued to hustle toward the driver's bench. "Hey! Stone Ears!" she bellowed, jabbing him between the shoulder blades with her walking stick.

The flute playing stopped, leaving the song with drumbeats, and a rather loud cry of pain. "Good _heavens_! That hurt!" he moaned, leaning over onto the sun-warmed wood of the bench, his back stinging from the blow. Ilon quieted the drum, looking at the driver in confusion. The trio behind the wagon continued to sing, a bit off tune without the melody to guide them.

"Ya pansy, I could've taken something harder than that and still stood," Mhal said, unconcerned, eyeing him. "Now listen here, Doughboy. I saw something white go into the bushes up ahead."

Rholyn massaged his spine and grimaced. "Oh, Mhal, your old eyes are deceiving you. I didn't see a thin – OWW!" he cried, clutching his skull.

Mhal glared at him, walking stick in hand. "Stop the wagon and look into it," she growled, "or I will."

The brown rukit rubbed his furry ear and grumbled. "Ho, Ohrani!" he shouted at the quiffer bouncing merrily along in his harness. Ohrani dug his claws into the dirt road and stopped with a high whistle of indignation from his nostrils. "Good boy," Rholyn said, sliding down off the driver's seat.

"Hey! Why'd we stop?" came the loud question from Unai. She peered around the corner of the wagon, brown eyes half-lidded. Barking came from the two wolfena who were running around the herd, keeping the rebels in their circle.

"Be quiet," Mhal grunted, sitting on a convenient bag of carrots. Unai snorted.

"Where'd you see it?" Rholyn asked, parting a line of growth.

"A couple feet to yer right, ya sleepy old man." The rukit's tail bristled out like a bottlebrush.

"I smell something weird…doesn't smell like a plains bird or a rabbit…," he muttered, wrinkling his snout as he stepped away. "Ilon, my dagger if you please."

The girl turned around and rummaged through the sacks they used to hide the trap door in the floor, pulling up the nearly invisible corner of the wood and taking out a plainly sheathed blade. "Here Lyn," she said, ignoring the snort Mhal gave at her pet name for Rholyn. The whole troupe knew that the two fancied each other. It was awkward though, because neither knew it. On quiet days, either one would confide to a different person that he or she liked him or her. The caravan, amused at the naivete of the duo, chose to keep quiet about it until one of them decided to pluck up their courage and tell the one.

"Thank you." He took the weapon from her slender hand and threw the scabbard onto the road, blade at the ready.

"If you get eaten, I'm not going to cry for you," Mhal called rudely. Rholyn ignored her and stepped into the undergrowth. After several tense minutes, there came a surprised 'Holy Claw!' from Rholyn and thunder from the forest that said "big creature coming this way" to the caravan. The brown rukit suddenly was ejected from the bushes like somebody had kicked him out and grabbed the sheath from the road where it lay.

"Get moving!" he yelled, scrambling onto the bench. Just as he gave the hoarse 'hiya' that made Ohrani take off like a sprinter, the vern Naicro burst out of the trees and landed in front of the quiffer, scaring him witless. The animal uttered a terrified screaming whistle and made a break for the right side of the road, the sudden motion knocking Mhal over with a shout. The contents of the wagon bounced as the quiffer ran like the devil was after it. "Oh yatin! They're still back there!" Rholyn bellowed, seizing the reins and yanking hard. The resulting motion made poor Ohrani stop abruptly and the wagon to jerk violently.

"Too late!" Orom moaned, looking out the back. His son, the herd, and the trio of sisters stood surrounded. "Jhadie!" he cursed. "I will not let them lay a hand on Choleil!" The black rukit jumped angrily out and ran full speed at the first person he saw, which happened to be Mikey waving his arms in a panicked motion at the enraged father.

"Wait a minute, _wait a minute_!" the turtle squealed. The oncoming Orom didn't slow at all. At the last possible second, a yellow, nine pound ball of hair and metal launched herself from the ground and ran into his chest, knocking him, breathless, to the dirt. He groaned and lay there for a moment before Palaesi climbed onto his chest and stared at him in interest.

"You hurt?" she inquired, poking his snout. Orom didn't answer but tried to catch his breath. "I help you up," the gunghir said happily, stretching her wings out. Wind blew him upright and she fell to the ground with a fleshy plop. Jehk ran to her from near Aireilei and helped her up.

The white dragon came over and inspected him with a critical periwinkle eye. "You really shouldn't do that," she said matter-of-factly.

"Orom! _Orom_!" Meikle cried.

"Dad, why'd you do a stupid thing like that?" Choleil muttered, seated atop a teela mare. Naicro came back at a lordly pace, escorting the frightened occupants of the wagon and the wagon itself back to the group.

"There is no reason to be afraid," the vern told Rholyn as he hopped down from the bench, the dagger clutched tightly in his hand. "We will not hurt you."

"I'm more afraid of being eaten," he replied truthfully.

"That lizard? Eat _you_?" Mhal said snidely. "You'd hardly make a mouthful!" Naicro extended his neck as a handhold for the elderly rukit as she descended.

"I have no interest in lunch at the moment," the vern said, eyeing Ohrani, whose spines were flat against his back with fear. Meikle jumped out of the wagon and ran to her disoriented husband, asking him odd questions and scolding him for his rashness.

"So what _do _you intend to do with us?" Ilon asked. "Are we to be arrested for insulting Xetyphaes?"

"Are you going to torture us?" Unai asked frightfully.

"Fry us?" Unoi added.

"Eat us?" Unei whispered. "Don't eat me, I'm only a child!" she whimpered when Iwansi suggestively eyed her leg. The dragon laughed at her response.

"You're almost twenty," Unoi said dryly.

"So?" Unei defended weakly.

"At the moment, we're not going to do anything," replied Bima, scratching what was left of her right ear. "And besides, we don't work for that bakira."

"I'd rather leave his entrails out to dry and give them to a griffin," Aireilei said vehemently, clenching her fists.

"Hey, there's tots around here, y'know," Mike protested, Palaesi and Jehk in separate arms.

"What's entrails?" Palaesi whispered to her friend. He shrugged.

* * *

(grins) And the plot thickens! At least for Raph it does. I'm keeping the plot thickener for Mikey from you until the next chapter.  
Raph: (grumbles) "Maniac. What' 'cha gonna do to me now?"  
(wink) I ain't telling! See you on the next installment!

Ashite Imasu,  
LN


End file.
